Part I: Personal net worth -- a case of perjury or money-laundering?
“When I travel, I don’t charge the government, although it’s allowed because it is work-related. I pay my own way. When you are this big, you have to follow the rules. You can’t afford not to, because all eyes are on you. It is not a wise business practice to use government perks. I’ll serve the three terms (allowed by the Constitution). After that, I’ll think about the future. But I’ll stop at being a congressman.” -- Senator Manny Villar
There was no doubt about it: the C5 issue had been troubling enough on its own merits. The scale of its core allegation -- that an esteemed solon had willfully deployed public funds for his own personal benefit – had been nothing short of vertiginous. The masterful studies by both Winnie ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUQDt-sXdlk) and Jamby (http:/ /www.scribd.com/doc/25528863/Senator-Madrigal-Expose-on-Senator-Villar-C-5-Scam-Part-1) conveyed volumes, as had Joker’s allegations of conflicts of interest a decade before (http://article.wn.com/view/2010/02/07/Joker_savaged_Villar_in_1998/). The latter’s recent (and arguably dubious) shift in tone notwithstanding, a seed of doubt had already begun to nestle in the public mind.
Still, there were other issues those lengthy readings had failed to shed light upon. Looking at Villar’s own C5 Primer and his Senate speech on 2 Feb 2010, one wonders at that controversial 2008 P 200M budget insertion, which had been initially embargoed by the DBM, but was subsequently used for the Sucat flyover after it was realized that the C5 extension was in fact a dead-end road. Had there even been an existing “program of work” so as to justify the term “double insertion̶! 1;? What we have on record, in fact, is an admission by Engine! er Adria no (the consultant for Villar-owned businesses who had allegedly dictated the Villar amendment to the 2008 national budget; this, at least, was according to Yolanda Doblon, Director General of the LBRMO, the Legislative Budget Research and Monitoring Office in the Senate) that the amount had been arbitrarily made in anticipation of the fact that the original P 200M would most likely be reduced; the superfluous P 200M may have been added after the dead-end realization had been made, prompting Villar to use the embargoed funds.
GMA supposedly instructed DPWH to submit the study to use the embargoed funds for the fly-over only after the budget allocation had already been made, thereby effectively providing a “program of work” to justify the release of funds. Needless to say, this is highly irregular: ! in established funding practice, a program of work is usually ! submitte d before. Does this suggest that the additional P 200M had been retroactively added to ultimately “free up” a h! itherto unprogrammed amount?
Adriano, a Villar real estate employee, had been put in a critical legislative role. And while there have been indications that, as a Lower House representative, Villar had put some of his employees on the congressional payroll, Adriano himself was apparently not on the Senate payroll. So why was he dealing with LBRMO in the first place? And why does Committee Report 780 contain several admissions indicating position and knowledge with respect to the 2008 budget allocations? Separate documents also tag Adriano as the sole contact person authorized to “deal” with government agencies and the courts (DAR, NIA, lower courts, a Malacañang employee, LGUs, etc.: does this suggest bribery?) before specific Villar company interests could even be ad! dressed.
This is not to quibble over minor details after the fact. But there was no doubt about it, as I said: there had been dubious business practices all round. So who was this Manny Villar and how had he managed to amass wealth that was nothing short of stratospheric in so short a span of time? According to PCIJ, after only 14 yea! rs in government, Villar's net worth had risen to P 1.05B in 2007 or to a staggering 1,292% increase from his assets in 1992:
In order to assess this "sipag at tiyaga" phenomenon as fairly as I knew how, I decided to inves! tigate him myself, and to separate both propaganda and polemic, on the one hand, from what could be empirically verified, on the other. I began to think in terms of a concentric circle: at the center of the circle, I would look at his personal finances (ultimately the measure of a man, one might say), before examining his land dealings in specific regions (as the circle expanded outwards) and, finally, his national/international endeavors on a larger scale (the outermost rim of the circle itself).
The personal: Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth
So I began with his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN). The documents studied (with the help of two gifted accountants, two lawyers and several highly-placed f! inancial analysts, not to mention a handful of deeply committed patriots who patiently withstood my incessant questions and valiantly wore as many hats as were needed at any given moment) are copies of SALNs filed in the Philippine Senate. The difficulties in accessing them notwithstanding, they are technically a matter of public record. They cover an 8-year period (2001-2008, inclusive) because the 2009 SALN is only due for filing on 30 April 2010.
Anyone who has had to draw up a balance sheet or assess their own personal net worth will tell you that it can be a royal pain in the neck. But those insufferable categories and dreadful numbers notwithstanding, none of it, really, is rocket science. In a nutshell, it’s simply a snapshot of your financial health in any given year. The net worth statement includes what is owned (assets) on the left side of the sheet, what is owed to creditors (liabilities) on the right side of the sheet, and the net value (or difference) between what is owned and what is owed (net worth). Unless you’re a vagabond or happen to be fabulously wealthy, you generally have both A&L.
So what do Mr Villar’s SALNs indicate? (The SALNs from 2001 to 2008 can be accessed here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/28483980/Villar-s-Sworn-Statement-of-Assets-as-of-12-31-01-p1; http://www.scribd.com/doc/28484047/Villar-s-Sworn-Statement-of-Assets-as-of-12-31-01-p2
a) Real Properties:! i) Land/Buildings
b) Investment in Shares of Stock
c) Personal Properties: i) Cash in Bank; ii) Receivables; and iii) Other Personal Properties
Please note that this analysis is based on “acquisition cost” or “book value,” as reported in the SALNs. To simplify the analysis, the cost of living and personal expenses of someone of his stature and wealth have not been considered. A comprehensive reading no longer requires Cynthia Villar’s SALNs because they are, in fact and law, only one economic unit. The 2007 and 2008 SALNs were also jointly filed by the spouses, which means that the net worth indicated is in fact their joint net worth.
General Observations
* No liabilities were reported at all: ergo, net worth = assets, which means that he had nothing to pay off.
* His net worth from 2001 to 2008 increased by P 641,133,934, or 133%, making his 2008 Net worth 258% of his 2001 net worth.
*According to several published reports (please see the PCIJ reference below for an example), he started with a networth of P 75M when he first entered politics as a Congressman in 1992. In a span of 16 years, therefore, he managed to increase his net worth by over 1000 percent!
*The biggest increase can be found in his Personal Properties -- P 618,363,371, or 309%, making his 2008 Personal Properties 409% of those in 2001.
*An increase in net worth suggests that he made or realiz! ed income in the previous years equal to at least the amount of the increase, considering that he has had no liabilities.
*There is, however, no indication that he made such an income, nor is it suggested how this migh! t have even been possible. As a Philippine senator, his declared salary is only P426,500.
* Real properties generally refer to real estate or immovable properties.
* In 2001, he reported only the following Real Properties at acquisition cost:
Residential, BFRV
Las Pinas: P 3, 181, 089
Residential, BF Vista Grande: 80, 000
Residential, BF Int’l LPC: 50, 000
Residential, Putatan, Muntinlupa: 446, 370
Residential, San Nicolas, Cavite: 337, 360
Residential, Naga Rd., LPC: 500, 000
Total: P4, 594, 819
* From 2002-2006, he declared the same properties, but at the aggregate acquisition cost of P4,588,619 (lower by only P6,200, so -- for the purposes of this analysis -- the lower figure is used).
* In 2007, this figure suddenly ballooned to P 19,518,532, or by 425% of the 2001 level. In absolute terms, this is an increase of P14, 929, 913.
* The 6 real properties listed from 2001-2006 became 38 parcels/pieces in 2007. These are the same properties declared in 2008. Reportedly, they are registered under the names of:
Cynthia alone, 10 parcels: P 5, 794, 232
Manny alone, 6 parcels: 2, 600, 500
The Spouses jointly, 8 parcels: 5, 503, 060
“Cynthia, married to Manny”: 14 parcels, 5, 620, 740
Total: P19, 518, 532
* There is no way to determine from the face of the SALN alone if the 6 properties he declared from 2001-2006 are the same 6 properties listed in his name in Annex “A;” for one, they are different in value/acquisition cost as those previously reported (PHP 2,600,000 v. ! 4,588,619 in 2002-2006). Those reported in 2001-2006 are listed by location; those in 2007-2008 are listed by title number and area, so an accurate comparison is difficult. However, since the aggregate acquisition cost of these properties in 2001-2006 are not much different from the 2007-2008 values, it may be safely assumed that the 6 properties in MV’s name are the same 6 properties he declared in 2001-2006.
* The rest of the listed properties – those registered under “Cynthia A. Villar m/to Manuel B. Villar,” and those registered in their joint names – are conjugal: should they therefore not have been declared in his SALNs from the outset as well? It is after all highly unlikely that they were only acquired in 2007, in view of the acquisition/book values that were given.
* Considering the values/amounts reported, it is equally unlikely that the Laurel Property on Shaw Blvd. (currently the NP HQ) is included in this list. This property is widely-known as having been acquired by Mr Villar and his wife: in a PDI article by Gerry ! Lirio in July 2008 (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20080713-148119/Villars-take-over-storied-Laurel-house-on-Shaw-Blvd), conversations with Cynthia on their purchase of the property are quoted, including their plans regarding the property, renovation costs of P4M, and the private dinner they shared when they first moved in, etc. Does this, too, suggest misrepresentation and therefore perjury? It should be remembered that we are after all required by law to declare all our assets and liabilities without any exclusions: any misrepresentation is considered to be perjury, which is a criminal offense.
Investment in Shares of Stock
* From 2001-2008, he declared Investments in Shares of Stock in a lump sum amount of P200, 837, 890 – no breakdown and no changes.
* In 2007, he itemized in Annex B.2.1 of his SALN the following “Investment Items” at “Book valu! e” (i.e., acquisition cost):
Shares of Stock, Adelfa Properties: P 99, 997, 000
Shares of Stock, Fine Properties: 98, 000, 000
Shares of Stock, MB Villar Co: 1, 000, 000
Shares of Stock, Macy’s Inc: 500, 000
Shares of Stock, Mooncrest Properties: 1, 340, 890
Total: P200, 837, 890
Could this really have been all? Where were the shares in the other companies? Indeed, had Mr Villar not gone out of his way to declare his enormous wealth to all and sundry? So why is it not in the books, one is compelled to ask?
Since the total value of the foregoing investments! is also P200,837,890 -- the same amount he reported from 2001-2006 as "Investments" -- and the companies are also the same companies he reported in 2001-2006 as those in which he and his wife had “business interests and financial connections,” is it not more likely that he is referring to the very same investments (which remained unchanged from 2001-2008) here?
In 2007, his investments in shares of stock increased by P7,846,850, although they remained unchanged in 2008. These consist of the following items:
Shares of Stock, PLDT: 10,600
Shares of Stock, Sun Life: (no value given)
Club share, Alabang Country Club: 1, 100, 000
Club Share, The Country Club: 4, 150, 000
Club Share, Quezon ! City Sports Club: 150, 000
Club Share, Tower Club: 356, 250
Club Share, Sta. Elena Golf Club: 1, 800, 000
No comments:
Post a Comment