Mayor slams CJHDevco ploy to elude payment

By Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio Domogan has slammed the Camp John Hay Development Corp. for using fault-finding strategy to elude payment of its lease rentals to the government arising from a thrice-revised contract to develop the former American military facility into a mix commercial-industrial use.

During a recent executive committee meeting at Baguio City Hall, Domogan dismissed as “negligible and a non-issue” CJHDevco’s complaint that the One-Stop Action Center (OSAC) put up by the John Hay Management Corp. (JHMC) to facilitate acquisition of documentary requirements of Camp John Hay locators was either non-operational or ineffective.

The JHMC, a subsidiary of the state-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), was created to oversee the property’s development into a special economic zone.

The BCDA was mandated through a legislative act to spearhead the transformation of former United States military bases in the Philippines, as well as Philippine military facilities with Metro Manila, into growth centers in partnership with private business.

Domogan stressed that the CJHDevco should not use the OSAC issue as an alibi for non-payment of its contractual obligations to BCDA.

Obviously irritated by CJHDevco’s fault-finding tactic, Domogan also branded as “funny and stupid” the real estate developer’s complaint about alleged non-issuance of building permits to Camp John Hay locators.

The Mayor aired concern over the controversies hounding the Camp John Hay development, saying he hoped it could be resolved “as soon as possible” so development efforts at the former American rest and recreation facility could move on.
Mayor Domogan asked CJHDevco to submit their position paper on the rental issue after BCDA presented to the joint Executive-Legislative Committee the current status of CJHDevco’s financial obligations to the government.

Dean Santiago, BCDA vice president for project development presented a detailed report on CJHDevco’s current rental arrears and interest on past due obligations amounting to P272 million as of March 2011.

CJHDevco representatives apparently came to the meeting empty-handed, and asked for a two-week grace period to prepare its comments on the BCDA report.

But the Mayor declined the CJHDevco bid, hinting that two weeks is too long just to come up with a comment on the BCDA report, adding later on that they don’t even have to conduct another executive meeting on the topics already taken up.

Baguio gets 25 percent of the lease rental payments by CJHDevco pursuant to some pre-conditions set by the local government unit in connection with the Camp John Hay development.