Wednesday, July 09, 2008 Judge says she can’t stop garnishment; what was asked was to defer payment
AS FAR as Judge Geraldine Faith Econg is concerned, the Regional Trial Court’s hands are tied as regards the garnishment of the Cebu City Government’s assets to pay for the Palicte property.
The order of garnishment, she said in a report over radio dyLA, has already been served by court sheriff Antonio Bellones.
Before the garnishment of Cebu City Government’s deposits is consummated, City officials are proposing to include the P14 million principal payment for the Palicte property in the second supplemental budget this year.
The City Government, however, is only willing to pay the principal amount of P14 million, while the City Attorney’s Office continues to negotiate with the Palicte heirs to waive P6.1 million in interest and legal fees.
While the appropriation of the principal amount due indicates the City’s willingness to pay the Palicte heirs, the City Government will also raise several questions in court.
But Judge Econg, according to the radio dyLA report, said that lawyers representing the Cebu City Government did not ask that the garnishment order be set aside. She clarified that the City only asked for the deferment of the order’s implementation.
Occupied
Had the City’s lawyers done so, she reasoned, the matter could have been heard.
The motion City Hall submitted after hearing of the order, Judge Econg said, merely raised the issue of whether or not the amount to be garnished corresponded to the actual value of the property in question.
It also cited how the property is currently being sat on by illegal occupants.
Councilor Jose Daluz III, a lawyer and chairman of the City Council committee on budget and finance, said the City will file a motion to clarify whether or not it should pay the Palicte heirs.
This, after City Hall learned that the estate of Don Felimon Sotto is also claiming to be the legitimate owner of the expropriated property in Barangay Capitol Site.
The City still has an unpaid balance of some P21 million for the property.
“We will include the principal amount of P14 million but not the P6.1 million interest yet. We are also planning to file a motion for clarification because we received information that there are other claimants, the Sottos,” Daluz told Sun.Star Cebu.
Frozen
Matilde S. Palicte, owner of the expropriated lot, is an illegitimate daughter of one of the Sottos.
“We have to ask the court what are the implications if the City pays the Palicte heirs when there is another claimant. We might be paying the wrong person,” he continued.
In separate interviews yesterday, Daluz and City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo said they both have not received any notice from any of the City’s depository banks on the final garnishment of the City’s deposits.
Banco de Oro Juan Luna Ave. Branch officers wrote Mayor Tomas Osmeña last month, informing him that they have set aside P20 million of the City’s funds, as ordered by the court sheriff.
Daluz and Camarillo said that the sum has not been turned over to the court yet, and the garnishment has therefore not been consummated.
Banco de Oro froze P20 million of the City’s deposits last June 6 upon the order of the court.
The amount has not been turned over to the court as payment for the expropriated property of the Palicte family, but City Hall can’t use the amount as well.
Payments
In response, City Attorneys Rodolfo Golez filed a motion and invoked a Supreme Court (SC) administrative circular preventing government funds from being seized through garnishment.
The City also cited Presidential Decree 1445, which states that the public treasury may be used as payment only in pursuance of an appropriation law.
But it did not ask the court to set aside the garnishment order until the other matters could be resolved.
Bellones’ computation shows that the total purchase price of the Palicte property is P23,782,500.
The City Government used the lot in 1997 and made a partial payment of P725,881 last May 8, 2002, after the RTC upheld its right to expropriate the property.
The next year, close to P9 million was garnished as partial payment, leaving a total balance of P14,093,335. But interests, computed starting Dec. 4, 2001, now total P6,214,208. (LCR/KNR)
