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Friday, January 13, 2006
Solon appeals court order on payment of airport contractor
A LAWMAKER has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to reverse its decision ordering government to pay P3 billion in just compensation to the private consortium that built the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 project.
In his motion for reconsideration, Ilocos Sur Rep. Salacnib Baterina told the court that the Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc. (Piatco) is not entitled to compensation for the cost it incurred for building the airport facility because it acted in bad faith when it entered into a contract with the government.
He said government has taken the position that fraud, bad faith, corruption, or bribery is present in the Piatco contracts and that government has indicated willingness to pay only a reimbursement of construction costs or quantum meruit (cost incurred).
"Public policy will be gravely violated if investors who contract in bad faith, such as Piatco are compensated instead of penalized for their wrongdoings. To permit the petitioners to compensate Piatco for both its legit and illicit investments in the Naia 3 projects will set dangerous precedent and certainly prejudice the public interest," he said.
Baterina is the vice chairman of the House committee on justice and member of the House committee on transportation and communication. He filed his motion before the SC in his capacity as intervenor in the government's expropriation case against Piatco with the Pasay City Regional Trial Court (RTC), before the sala of the late Judge Henrick Guingoyon.
He said the government's takeover of Naia 3 may be imperiled if the claims of the other subcontractors such as the two Japanese firms hired by Piatco, Takenaka and Asahikosan Corps, would not be addressed.
"There are creditors and contractors who assert various claims and/or liens on the Naia 3 facilities. It would be anomalous for government to purchase any property that is not free from liens or encumbrances. At the very least, a successful expropriation will be prevented if the liens of creditors or contractors to Piatco are not resolved," he said.
Takenaka and Asahikosan have filed separate pleadings before the SC last Wednesday seeking the deferral of payment of compensation to Piatco until the case has been decided on with finality.
Earlier, Baterina submitted a memorandum to the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), which is representing the state in the Piatco case, stating that government need not exercise its power of eminent domain in acquiring possession of the airport facility.
He said since the Naia 3 is not private property, which can be subject of an expropriation case, government may consider takeover without paying compensation to Piatco since the terminal sits smack on government land.
Citing the Civil Code, Baterina said ownership of property gives the right by accession to everything which is incorporated or attached thereto, and whatever is built on the land of another and the improvements or repairs made thereon, belong to the owner of the land,"
If the claims of Piatco's contractors are not resolved or addressed prior to a takeover of Naia 3, he warned that contractors may not turn over full documentation and may not honor their warranties.
"This will put government's take over at peril. We have no doubt that given the evidence existing on corruption, bribery or fraud, it may even be viable to deny a claim by Piatcofor quantum meruit," he said.
Baterina further claimed there is no law that confers ownership of Naia 3 on Piatco while there is legal basis for government's takeover of the airport facility.
He said the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) had not consented that structures to be built by anyone in the property would be owned separately by a private party although the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) leases the land.
Thus, the terminal is already owned by the government through BCDA and is not a proper object of eminent domain, he said. (ECV/Sunnex)
(January 13, 2006 issue)
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