Saturday, June 07, 2008 Group to start looking into works on CICC
THE Regional Trial Court (RTC) has formally created the team that will look into the segments of work in the building of the multi-million peso Cebu International Convention Center (CICC).
Two of the three-member panel—Eulogio Pelayre and Lorenzo Villaber—took their oath before RTC Judge Ester Veloso in a hearing yesterday morning.
Pelayre represents the Provincial Government while Villaber is from WT Construction, the company that executed the government-funded project.
The third member will come from the Commission on Audit.
“Both parties can have their appraisal. But the court must still have its own,” said Veloso in an interview after the hearing.
The appraisal committee aims to evaluate each segment of work and whether or not these are already paid for under the various releases the Provincial Government made.
WT Construction earlier lodged a money-claim suit against the Province, saying the firm performed a segment of work that has not yet been paid.
The firm said work for the segment was carried out despite the absence of the contract upon the request of the Province, which was hurrying to beat a deadline.
The CICC was among the venues of the 12th Asean Summit which was held here in Cebu City.
The Capitol later refused to pay the money claim, citing the absence of the contract.
WT Construction lawyer Makilito Mahinay said the committee’s findings would prove that the firm did perform work that it had not yet been paid for and the actual value of that additional work.
The Capitol had earlier pegged the cost of the CICC at P581 million, not including the additional work.
But the construction firm said the figures did not include the billable amount of P260 million that, it added, covered plumbing and electrical work.
The firm said it was only “misled” into accepting the additional order.
The firm wants the court to issue a writ of preliminary attachment against the Capitol to insure payment.
It then wants the court to determine the validity of its claim and, in so doing, order the Provincial Government to pay the P175,951,478.69 for site development, structural and architectural work, plus an additional P85,266,407.97 for the plumbing and electrical work components.
The firm also wants the court to compel the Province to pay interest of 12 percent per annum from February 2007 until full payment, as well as exemplary damages at P5 million. (KNR)
