Finance prods SC to act on 29 cases

THE DEPARTMENT of Finance has asked the Supreme Court to speed up action on an inventory of 29 cases languishing in various levels of the judiciary because a lack of resolution was hindering the Aquino administration from collecting much-needed revenues.

In a letter to Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez dated Feb. 17, Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima said these cases “involve payables to the national government and government-owned and - controlled corporations.”

“Some are key investment-related cases, the resolution of which will further boost the country’s image as a predictable and stable investment destination,” Purisima said.

On the other hand, for the cases to re-

main unresolved "for a protracted period .. .effectively deprive[s] the public of funds that are rightfully theirs,” he added.

The cases—which date as far back as 2002—included one pending before a municipal trial court (MTC), 14 before the regional trial courts (RTC), four before the Court of Appeals and 10 before the Supreme Court.

Purisima cited as among the most notable of the cases—because of the potential “substantial income” involved—those involving land rent from Sunvar Realty Development Corp. on the Mile Long property in Makati City as well as from Philippine Interna- tional Corp. (PIC) on the Star City property in Pasay City.

The Privatization Management Office (PMO) has filed a case against Sunvar involving the government’s 2.9-hectare property in Makati City. But proceedings ground to a halt when the Makati RTC Branch No. 134, where the case was filed in 2009, granted Sunvar’s petition for a review of the case.

The case has not moved pending the high court’s resolution of the government’s appeal of the RTC decision.

Also, the PMO is awaiting the high tribunal’s resolution of its case against PIC filed in 2005, in which it questioned the company’s alleged “unilateral automatic renewal” of its lease contract for another 25 years on the 3.4-hectare area that the amusement park occupies. Before that, PIC is said to have refused a renegotiation of the original rental rate.

According to the PMO, the Mile Long and Star City properties were last appraised at around P1.7 billion and P1.1 billion, respectively.

Purisima said there was a need “to facilitate the disposition of [these] cases… given their significant impact on the economy, public finances and the country’s overall investment climate.”