Subic developer decries graft charges
A LAND developer based in Subic decried reports that he and former Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority chairman Felicito Payumo were accused of corruption before the Ombudsman for allegedly entering into a contract that deprived the government of millions of pesos in revenues each month.
Citing a report of Standard Today, Marianito Fernandez of Subic Coastal Development Corp. did not deny that he was facing corruption charges but insisted that his development of 18 hectares of land at the Subic Freeport actually improved an asset of the government.
“How can they compare the straight lease contract of Subic Aqua Sports (Scuba Shack) over a mere 500 square meters with a building with the lease-development contract of Subic Coastal Development covering 18 hectares? This was a wasteland before where the only things here were camachile trees and a drainage outfall,” Fernandez said.
“The site is now a highly developed area where Pier 1 and several restaurants and hotels have located. Before, no one would want to locate here because the city cemetery was fronting the area. The PX Club closed shop and so did a few establishments. It was only after we did a horizontal development plan for the area with architect Jun Palafox that the site acquired a new look,” he added.
“Why should I be penalized?” the developer asked. “On the contrary, I should be commended for having pioneered in developing the area.”
Fernandez also cited that the contract he signed with Payumo was not just a fixed-base rental but also provided for a percentage of gross revenue and sublease share for SBMA.
“This way, SBMA also benefits if the project succeeds. The SBMA board then understood that a high fixed-base rent may not be attractive to a highly speculative project. It’s possible that the project may have failed, then I would be alone to suffer my loss,” he said.
“Luckily, it succeeded, but I am now getting these harassments,” Fernandez said. “They don’t seem to value the investments totaling P860 million from the developer and 17 locators to date, the 350 personnel employed, and the P10 million monthly expenditures of the establishments.”
During the construction alone, he said the locators purchased close to P350 million in construction materials. That definitely perked up commerce in the surrounding communities.
Fernandez said he is now paying P156,000 in rent and percentage share for developed areas. “This will still increase as we develop more areas. Before we came in, the area was giving zero income for SBMA.”
Fernandez posed the question, “If these objectors will question the commitments of the SBMA under the Payumo board, then they should also examine contracts approved by his predecessor’s board.” Manila Standard
Citing a report of Standard Today, Marianito Fernandez of Subic Coastal Development Corp. did not deny that he was facing corruption charges but insisted that his development of 18 hectares of land at the Subic Freeport actually improved an asset of the government.
“How can they compare the straight lease contract of Subic Aqua Sports (Scuba Shack) over a mere 500 square meters with a building with the lease-development contract of Subic Coastal Development covering 18 hectares? This was a wasteland before where the only things here were camachile trees and a drainage outfall,” Fernandez said.
“The site is now a highly developed area where Pier 1 and several restaurants and hotels have located. Before, no one would want to locate here because the city cemetery was fronting the area. The PX Club closed shop and so did a few establishments. It was only after we did a horizontal development plan for the area with architect Jun Palafox that the site acquired a new look,” he added.“Why should I be penalized?” the developer asked. “On the contrary, I should be commended for having pioneered in developing the area.”
Fernandez also cited that the contract he signed with Payumo was not just a fixed-base rental but also provided for a percentage of gross revenue and sublease share for SBMA.
“This way, SBMA also benefits if the project succeeds. The SBMA board then understood that a high fixed-base rent may not be attractive to a highly speculative project. It’s possible that the project may have failed, then I would be alone to suffer my loss,” he said.
“Luckily, it succeeded, but I am now getting these harassments,” Fernandez said. “They don’t seem to value the investments totaling P860 million from the developer and 17 locators to date, the 350 personnel employed, and the P10 million monthly expenditures of the establishments.”
During the construction alone, he said the locators purchased close to P350 million in construction materials. That definitely perked up commerce in the surrounding communities.
Fernandez said he is now paying P156,000 in rent and percentage share for developed areas. “This will still increase as we develop more areas. Before we came in, the area was giving zero income for SBMA.”
Fernandez posed the question, “If these objectors will question the commitments of the SBMA under the Payumo board, then they should also examine contracts approved by his predecessor’s board.” Manila Standard
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