National Press Club urged to probe ‘harassment’ of media outfits by land developer

A cause-oriented group is urging the National Press Club (NPC) to look into claims of some media organizations that they are being “harassed” for reporting on the questionable joint venture agreement

between state-owned Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation (IBC-13) and a real estate firm, which is seeking to develop the former’s property in Quezon City.

“We call on the Committee of Press Freedom of the National Press Club to look into reports that some media outfits have received “warning” from lawyers of R-II Builders Inc. on possible lawsuits should they continue writing negative stories,” Coalition of Filipino Consumers through its Secretary General Perfecto Jaime Tagalog said in a statement e-mailed to Justice reporters.

“The Coalition has been an ally of the media in ferreting out the truth. Any form of media harassment is despicable,” Tagalog said.

The group earlier called on the Senate to investigate the JVA.

Another group, Philippine Crusader for Justice, also said it would ask the Supreme Court to nullify the JVA.

IBC-13 and RII Builders Inc-Primestate Ventures Inc. signed the JVA on March 24, 2010, to develop 36,401 of the 41,401-square-meter IBC-13 property in Broadcast City in Capitol Hills, Diliman, Quezon City, into a residential complex and the remaining 5,000 sqm for the construction of two buildings of IBC-13.

In its 2011 report, COA said the land contributed to the JVA was undervalued at only P9,999.99 per sqm when it could have been appraised at a much higher rate of P22,000 per sqm.

COA also said that the agreement in the JVA was in favor of RII Builders Inc-Primestate Ventures Inc. as IBC-13 would only be left with 5,000 sqm for its Broadcast City “with a relatively small 2-storey commercial building which may earn a small income.”

The transaction has also been the subject of an investigation by the Office of the Ombudsman since 2013.

Meanwhile, R-II Builder corporate secretary Mark Boado said in his Twitter account that the allegation of harassment “is just dirty tactics from a desperate group.”

He said the allegation on the JVA had been cleared a long time ago.