TABUK CITY, Kalinga – The Office of the Ombudsman is being requested to conduct an investigation and initiate the filing of appropriate administrative and criminal charges against Mayor Darwin C. Estrañero for allegedly embezzling a huge amount of money and entering into a grossly disadvantageous contract for the purchase of parcels of land for the city government.
In a 7-page sworn affidavit received by the Office of the Ombudsman, Vice Mayor Bernard Glenn Dao-as sought the filing with the Sandiganbayan of an administrative charge for grave misconduct against Mayor Estrañero for allegedly pocketing more than P25 million from the proceeds of the purchase price of the parcels of land bought by the city government aside from the filing of the criminal information for malversation of public funds against the city chief executive for his allegedly embezzling the aforesaid amount.
Further, the complainant also sought the filing of violation of pertinent provisions of Republic Act (RA) 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against the city mayor for his alleged act of receiving a percentage of the purchase price for the parcels of land bought by the city government and for causing undue injury to the city for his act of entering into contracts which are exorbitantly overpriced and grossly disadvantageous to the city government.
Records show that on August 23, 2019, the city government represented by Mayor Estrañero executed 3 deeds of sale of registered land in Barangay Laya West having a total land area of 18,306 square meters that was purchased by the city.
On August 29, 2019, Mayor Estrañero certified the obligation request for the amount of the purchase price of the 3 parcels of land wherein the same had a purchase price of P15.5 million and that on August 30, 2019, he approved the payment of the purchase price for the 3 parcels of land amounting to a total of P46.7 million.
Further, the city mayor signed the checks representing the payment of the purchase price for the 3 parcels of land on August 30, 2019, the day when he signed the disbursement voucher for the same.
Dao-as alleged that the purchase price of the 3 parcels of land which was pegged at P2,555 per square meter was reportedly grossly overpriced considering that the fair market value reflected in the respective tax declarations of the properties were significantly and substantially lower where the tax declarations clearly reflect that the fair market value of the purchased lands should not be more than P28.81 per square meter.
“Evidently, the purchase price of P2,555 per square meter paid by the city government is grossly and shockingly over and above the fair market value of agricultural lands in barangay Laya West as determined by the City Assessor’s Office,” Dao-as stressed.
He further alleged that the certification issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) showed that the zonal value of irrigated rice lands in barangay Laya West is only P13.50 per square meter and that the zonal value of a regular residential land in Barangay Laya West is P90 per square meter and that of a regular commercial land is P110 per square meter which are still considerably and significantly below the P2,555 per square meter paid for by the city government for the three parcels of agricultural land.
He disclosed that an adjacent agrarian land in Barangay Laya West sold on November 17, 2017 for only P76.66 per square meter and that the parcel of land that was sold had an area of 26,088 square meters and was bought for some P2 million inclusive of transfer fees and taxes.
In the case of the land that was bought by the city from Aurelio Alon Bitanga where the title was transferred to his name on August 6, 2019, a few days before the same was purchased from him by the city, Dao-as claimed that the new owner bought the property from Placido Tone married to Caridad Tome for only P200,000 based on the extra-judicial settlement of estate with simultaneous deed of sale.
He also questioned how the City Inventory, Asset Management, Appraisal and Disposal Committee was able to appraise the land of Bitanga on July 29, 2019 when the title was only issued on August 6, 2019, thus, the report of the committee is reportedly falsified since it is impossible for it to appraise a land covered by a title before the same was issued to the owner.
Worst, he observed it seems the appraisal of the land was merely simulated to facilitate the alleged overpriced purchase and that the circumstances suggest that the committee did not allegedly conduct a truthful and precise appraisal of the 3 parcels of land that were purchased by the city.
According to him, there is no clear basis for the committee to approve the amount of P2,555 per square meter as the purchase price of the 3 parcels of land and it is highly suspicious that the owners of the lands sold to the city were represented by the same attorney-in-fact namely Florence B. Doclan in the execution of the deeds of sale.
Dao-as also discovered the deeds of sale do not reflect that the same were executed with the consent of the spouses of the property owners considering that the titles of the 3 parcels of land indicate that the registered owners are married, thus, there is strong presumption that the properties are either part of the conjugal partnership or absolute community.
Dao-as narrated that there were several attempts by some individuals who are relatives of some of the property owners to bribe him as a form of expressing their gratitude for the completed transactions but he declined such offers because he was aware that the said transaction was tainted with corruption and irregularities.
In a phone interview, Mayor Estrañero expressed his surprise on the case filed against him by his vice mayor, saying that the same is politically motivated and that he has yet to receive official summons to reply although he believes that the case will be dismissed pursuant to juris prudence established by the Supreme Court in a case of overpricing that the action of a local chief executive is ministerial on the matter.
He is wondering why the vice mayor filed a case against him with the Ombudsman, the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and that he is simply awaiting the resolutions of the cases with the PACC and NBI when in fact, he never initiated the filing of a case against him aside from the fact that a private individual filed a case against him before the Ombudsman for alleged extortion.
In a narration of facts forwarded by the local chief executive that caused the purchase of the property, a proposal for the construction of new buildings of various national offices was submitted to the office of former Mayor Ferdinand Tubban wherein there were 8 property owners that offered their lots to the city for possible purchase which trace back from the previous to the present administration.
He added that the plan to purchase lands for the aforesaid purpose started way back in February 2019 and was only completed during the second semester of the same year wherein the purchase of the lots was supported by an appraisal report dated February 9, 2019.
On July 10, 2019, the City Appraisal Committee received a letter from Mr. George S. Galacyan and Mr. Robert Balageo represented by Mr. Ruben Balageo dated June 26, 2019 conveying their interest to sell their adjoining properties located at Laya West and looking for consideration of the committee on their intention.
On July 15, 2019, Mr. Emilio C. Bai and Mr. Aurelio Allon Bitanga submitted their intention to sell their lots located at barangay Laya West knowing that the local government has plans to procure lot for the new buildings of national offices in the city.
Executive Or No. 20 dated July 19, 2019 was issued re-organizing the city Inventory, asset Management, Appraisal and Disposal Committee to conduct the pre-procurement process by validating offers, doing canvasses on their own initiatives with banks and cooperatives as to the current fair market value of real properties long national and provincial roads. Wherein accessibility and location is an essential requirement, side from the requisite frontage and entrance.
On July 29, 2019, the committee submitted their report to the City Mayor recommending the appraised lands which are best suited and appropriate for the requirements of accessibility, location and widths for frontage and entrance. And on August 5, 2019, a special power attorney was given to Ms. Florence B. Doclan constituting her as attorney-in-fact of her parents Mr. Emilio Caguay Bai and Mrs. Francisca Dumal-is Bai to sign and receive payments. Likewise, Mr. Aurelio Bitanga also constituted Ms. Doclan as his attorney-in-fact for the same.
On August 19, 2019, Resolution No. 116, series of 219 was approved granting the request of the local chief executive for an authority to enter into a contract of sale without any question on the prices, location and the antecedent transactions. Consequently, the lots of the aforesaid individuals were selected considering that the 3 los will have a combined width of 3- meters being 10 meters each in width, thus, it can accommodate the desired buildings.
On August 23, 2019, after all the necessary utilization by both parties, Estrañero entered into a deed of sale on the specific lands in the name of the different vendors with Doclan signing as attorney-in-fact of all the vendors and the local government duly represented by virtue of an authority given to him from the city council.
Based on the documents that had been made available, the total worth of the properties procured for the aforesaid purpose amounted to P46.7 million which was received in favor of the property owners by the attorney-in-fact.
Estrañero furnished the publication with a copy of an affidavit of a private individual accusing the vice mayor of alleged extortion that was filed before the Ombudsman wherein the same is related to the procured property by the city.
By DEXTER A. SEE