Sunday, February 11, 2007
Lapu's mayor 'asked for 3%'
By Oscar C. Pineda
CEBU CITY -- A businessman accused Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Arturo Radaza of accepting a P15-million bribe from a contractor who reportedly cornered four big projects in the city worth P500 million.
In a DVD distributed to reporters Saturday, contractor Nelson Yu alleged that the mayor received three percent of the contract price.
"Pila man kang mayor, Mayor Radaza (How much goes to Mayor Radaza)?" businessman Richard King asked Yu in the DVD.
"Gamay ra'y gipangayo, three percent ra (He's asking only for a small amount. Only three percent," said Yu.
King also alleged that his brother Rafael handed to Radaza P200,000 "for the boys," in exchange for the building permit of Crown Regency hotel in Barangay Gun-ob.
The expose was made in a press conference called Saturday by the Kings in Club Ultima on Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City.
The brothers also announced that they will file criminal, civil and administrative cases against Radaza and other City Hall officials for demolishing their beachfront property in Barangay Agus last Friday.
City Attorney Joseph Lim, engineer Julito Cuizon and City Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management Council chairman Pepe Berido will be included.
The Kings' lawyer, Deolito Alvarez, said they are still investigating other local officials involved in the demolition and will include in the cases.
Radaza, when sought for his reaction, denied the allegations.
He admitted viewing the DVD, though he did not say how he got hold of a copy.
The mayor, in a mobile phone interview, said the Kings were motivated to make the accusations because the City Government demolished their property.
He also said City Hall has a pending case against the Kings' hotel because it has no building permit.
When asked if the expose was in retaliation for the demolition of their property, Richard said during the press conference that it is their duty as citizens to report a crime.
During last Friday's demolition, City Attorney Lim, despite being told that Kings own the property, insisted that Benjamin Ebrada is the owner. He said the property has no permit from the local government and from the Philippine Reclamation Authority.
But Alvarez showed reporters Saturday the property's environmental compliance certificate (ECC) dated April 28, 2003 from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
The City Government and the mayor were given a copy of the ECC.
Alvarez said the destruction of the reclaimed 3,360-square-meter property is illegal because the Department of Public Works and Highways and the DENR had approved it years back and that it was demolished in violation of due process because they were not notified.
Lim earlier said they gave Ebrada a notice of demolition but did not get any reply.
The Kings said they will seek damages amounting to millions of pesos.
After tackling the demolition, Richard distributed DVDs to reporters. He then showed them the video.
Alvarez said they will let an independent body transcribed the tape's contents and submit this as evidence in another case they will file against Radaza and Yu.
The videotape was a conversation of the Richard and Rafael with Yu inside the Kings' conference room. Yu is their hotel contractor in Davao and other areas.
Their meeting was recorded by a surveillance camera installed in the conference room.
Augusto Macam, another lawyer of the Kings, said the camera is part of building security. He said there were notices that the place is equipped cameras.
The footage shows the Kings asking Yu about his P500-million project in Lapu-Lapu City.
When the Kings asked, "Three percent iya (Radaza)?" Yu answered yes.
Yu was referring to the City Government's priority projects, which include the new public market, with "hoops dome" and sports complex, the fire department and the transport terminal.
The construction projects were all done by Yu.
When the Kings applied for building permit for the construction of the Crown Regency hotel, the mayor also allegedly demanded for P8 million or 10 percent of the total amount of the project.
The Kings refused as they did not have the amount.
Richard said he and his brother set a meeting with Mayor Radaza at lawyer Dick Sison's house.
"Right then and there Sison told Rafael, 'what is your budget in order that you'd be happy also, yung for the boys,'" said Richard.
Sison is one of Radaza's consultants.
Rafael said he handed P200,000 to Radaza at the house of Sison.
"After that if you notice, we did not do any projects in Mactan," he said. (Sun.Star Cebu)For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star General Santos. (February 11, 2007 issue)
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