A property developer controlled by construction firm F.F. Cruz & Company Inc. asked the Makati City regional trial court to reverse its ruling that allowed the Gatchalian family’s Waterfront Manila Premier Development Corp., the Philippine Reclamation Authority and the City of Manila to reclaim 318 hectares on Manila Bay.
Asian Seas Resources and Construction Development Corp., in a 24-page motion for reconsideration filed on Aug. 22 before the Makati RTC Branch 139, asked the court to reconsider its Aug. 4 order setting aside its April 25, 2022 ruling that voided the P34.3-billion joint venture of Waterfront Manila, PRA and City of Manila.
Makati RTC Judge Rommel Baybay said in an Aug. 4 order the petitioner failed to “implead” the Office of the President, which it said was an indispensable party, when it sued the joint venture parties and stakeholders PRA, the City of Manila and Waterfront Manila.
“In the absence of the indispensable party in the instant case, the assailed decision should be vacated,” Baybay said in his ruling. This was a reversal of the court’s April 25 decision.
The Makati court, in its April 25 decision, declared null and void the contract to reclaim 318 hectares in Manila Bay for allegedly not undergoing a competitive bidding process and NEDA Board evaluation and approval for encroaching in areas covered by another reclamation contract.
ASSERCO filed a civil case against PRA, City of Manila and Waterfront because the awarded project to Waterfront overlapped the former’s project award issued in 1991 by PRA.
“The Honorable Court erred when it vacated and set aside the decision dated 25 April 2022 on the ground that the Office of the President is an indispensable party when the same has been resolved by the Honorable Court in its order dated 17 February 2022, which became final and binding to the parties,” ASSERCO said.
“The issue whether the Office of the President is an indispensable party was already resolved by the Honorable Court in its order dated 17 February 2022,” ASSERCO, represented by the Bernas Law Offices, said in its 24-page motion for reconsideration.
ASSERCO said that the Office of the President, in one of its letters to the PRA, instructed that the vested rights of third parties should not be prejudiced by the joint venture reclamation project led by Waterfront Manila.
“The letter of the Office of the President itself states that vested rights of third parties must not be prejudiced. Thus, it was only Respondent PRA that prejudiced Petitioner and not the Office of the President,” ASSERCO said.
“In the memorandum from the Executive Secretary to the PRA dated 28 November 2019, it was expressly stated by the Office of the President that pursuant to Executive Order No. 74 [s.2019] that the PRA governing board has the power to approve reclamation projects; hence, it was respondent PRA and not the Office of the President who prejudiced the petitioner,” ASSERCO said.
“Apart from this memorandum, there is no other fact which even suggests any participation of the Office of the President. Thus, it was well within the discretion of Judge Pozon to decide based on the only fact alleged, whether the Office of the President is an indispensable party,” ASSERCO said.
“In summary, regardless of impleading the Office of the President in the present case, the same conclusions will be the same as provided in the decision dated 25 April 2022,” ASSERCO said.
“At the end of the day, the reclamation project was not bidded out by respondent PRA or any other national government agency. It was conceived by respondent Waterfront Manila, a private party, enabled by respondent City of Manila, and then folded into respondent PRA in order to provide the illusion that the Waterfront reclamation is a national government project,” ASSERCO said.
“Finally, Respondent City of Manila is not authorized to undertake reclamation for purposes of engaging in the business of land development. Accordingly, the project is ultra vires, being a mere project of a private party but disguised as a local government project,” ASSERCO said.