Thursday, April 24, 2008 Sandiganbayan help sought on disposition of 'Jose Velarde' account
BANCO de Oro (BDO) Unibank Incorporated, formerly BDO-Equitable PCI Bank (EPCIB) Incorporated, has asked for the help of the Sandiganbayan Special Division on how to further proceed with the disposition of assets contained in the infamous "Jose Velarde" account.
The bank, through lawyers Carlos Buenaventura and Corazon Leynes Xavier, said it is at a complete loss as to what to do with the account, which is covered by the amended writ of execution issued by the anti-graft court.
The court ordered the forfeiture of the assets for being part of the ill-gotten wealth of former President Joseph Estrada, who on September 12, 2007, was convicted of plunder.
BDO, the administrator of the Velarde assets, said it could not "determine without hazard to itself" to which office it shall deliver the assets in view of the prior lien of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the claim of the Wellex Group Incorporated of plastics king William Gatchalian.
"Prompted by caution and prudence, the bank seeks the guidance of the Honorable Court on how to further proceed with the disposition of the subject individually managed account (IMA) in view of the prior lien of the BIR and the claim of the Wellex Group Incorporated," said the bank lawyers in a manifestation to the Special Division.
In the aftermath of Edsa People Power 2 that toppled Estrada in 2001, the BIR slapped a "destraint order" against the Velarde assets to enable it to collect on taxes that the owner of the deposits has left unpaid.
Earlier this year, Banco de Oro asked the BIR to lift the seven-year-old freeze order on the assets but the tax agency refused, saying it has yet to complete its investigation on the Velarde account.
The BIR also cited "government interest" in preventing the Sandiganbayan from garnishing the Velarde assets.
Then came the Wellex Group, which on January 21, 2008, wrote the bank to claim ownership over the contents of the Velarde account originally held in EPCIB.
The Gatchalian-led group has informed the bank that it is interested in retrieving the shares it used as collateral to the P500-million loan it obtained from the owner of the Velarde account.
The loan was then extended by EPCIB, acting as the investment manager of Investment Management No. 1001-78056-1 in the name of Jose Velarde, to the Wellex Group in 2000.
Wellex Group claimed it has already paid the account owner the principal of the loan, although interest payments stopped at some point.
"The Wellex Group, Incorporated is presently interested in retrieving the shares given as security for the loan obligation which apparently has been extinguished," said Lamberto Mercado Jr., vice president for legal affairs of Wellex Group.
Mercado was referring to the Velarde assets, consisting of a promissory note and chattel mortgage worth P500 million; P450 million shares in Waterfront Philippines; P300 million shares in Wellex Industries; and a common trust fund investment amounting to P95.759 million.
All these assets are estimated to be worth more than P1.1 billion.
In its September 12, 2007 decision convicting Estrada of plunder, the Sandiganbayan declared the ousted leader as the "personal and beneficial owner" of the Velarde account.
The 71-year-old former President, however, maintained that the account belonged to businessman Jaime Dichaves, one of his co-accused in the plunder case who remains at large. (Sunnex)
