My Exclusive
By Raïssa Robles
ONE OF THE THINGS Chief Justice Renato Corona has to prove to the impeachment court is that he correctly filled up his SALNs (Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth) and whatever errors or omissions they contain are minor and not enough to get him kicked out of office.
One section of his SALN has highly intrigued me — the one on LIABILITIES where he is supposed to declare any loans, mortgages – in other words, utang.
In seven of his SALNs, he declared under LIABILITIES a “cash advance”, initially worth P11 million which through the years kept going down. The source of the cash advance? His “wife’s family corporation” – which he identified as Basa-Guidote Enterprises, Inc. in his SALNs for 2003, 2004 and 2005.
Thanks to this cash advance, CJ Corona became instantly richer by P11 million – money which (according to his lawyers) he used to buy property. By the way, they have yet to show the paper trail from the cash advance to any of the properties.
This is my question about the“cash advance”: How could Corona have received millions from a corporation where his wife did not own any shares and where most of the shareholders – who were all her relatives – were openly quarreling with her?
In fact they had sued each other in court.The Basas had sued Corona’s wife Cristina for estafa; while Cristina sued them back for libel. Cristina won her libel suit and to satisfy the award of damages to her, the court allowed the Basa-Guidote shares held by her losing relatives to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.
As it turned out, the highest and only bidder was none other than Cristina Corona’s daughter Carla. QC Sheriff Joseph Bisnar, who had presided over the September 30, 2003 auction, testified last Tuesday (May 8, 2012) that Corona’s daughter bought 4,839 shares of Basa-Guidote for P28,000 – equivalent to 90.87% of the company. Under corporation law, that means Carla Castillo practically owns Basa-Guidote.
But here’s the thing — the advance of millions to Corona was allegedly made to him by Basa-Guidote just days before Carla Castillo won the September 30, 2003 auction and obtained the corporation’s controlling shares, defense lawyer Judd Roy told the impeachment court last Tuesday.
Atty Roy said:
The cash advance occurred between September 5 and September 30, 2003. Because at the time the cash advance was drawn, the shares had not been sold to Carla Corona.
He then added that:
After September 30 (auction), the facts of the case change because the shares are now owned by a different person. The corporation is now controlled by a different person, Carla Castillo.
Those are Atty Roy’s own words, not mine.
Atty Roy has yet to submit to court any proof that the cash advance was indeed taken out BEFORE September 30, 2003.
But let’s just assume that was what happened.
In this piece, I will not go yet into the strange, strange case of Basa-Guidote. I will only talk about Basa-Guidote’s “cash advance” to CJ Corona and whether he disclosed these correctly in his SALNs.
Defense lawyer Roy implied last week that CJ Corona’s disclosures on his “cash advance” were accurate and complete.
Let’s now examine CJ Corona’s SALNs on the basis of the evidence presented last week by Sheriff Bisnar – that after September 30, 2003 Basa-Guidote was in fact owned by Carla Castillo because she won 90.87% of the company shares in a court auction.
It is in Chief Justice Corona’s SALN for 2003 – which he filed in April 2004 – where it is first recorded that he took out a cash advance from Basa-Guidote, his “wife’s family corporation.”
See below –
SALN 2003 of Chief Justice Corona**
Let’s now examine Chief Justice Corona’s subsequent SALNs
Let’s see how CJ Corona recorded in his subsequent SALNS his P11 million cash advance and the dramatic change in Basa-Guidote’s ownership.
For his SALN of the following year 2004 which he filed on April 2005, CJ Corona showed that his cash advance remained at P11 million and was drawn from his “wife’s family corporation” :
SALN 2004 of Chief Justice Corona**
This was even though he presumably knew – as the father of Carla and as the spouse of Cristina – that Basa-Guidote was no longer his “wife’s family corporation”. It had become his daughter’s corporation over a year before he had filed his 2004 SALN.
I say the word “presumably” with confidence because after all, he must know a lot about Basa-Guidote because its millions ended up deposited in one of his personal accounts at Philippine Savings Bank (PSB) Katipunan branch. It was NOT an AND/OR account. It was a single account where he alone could withdraw from.
Anyway, going back to his SALNs, for CJ Corona’s SALN of 2005 which he filed in April 2006, he listed under “liabilities” a “cash advance” of P10 million due for payment to Basa-Guidote. Again, he described it as his “wife’s family corporation.”
SALN 2005 of Chief Justice Corona**
This was even though Basa-Guidote had ceased being his wife’s family corporation on September 30, 2003, when it became his daughter Carla’s corporation – at least according to Atty Roy and Sheriff Bisnar.
Why didn’t CJ Corona disclose this fact? Perhaps he can explain this if and when he testifies.
But let’s continue.
For CJ Corona’s SALN as of December 31, 2006 which he filed in April 2007, he listed P8 million under “liabilities” and described it as a “cash advance from wife’s family corp.”
SALN 2006 of Chief Justice Corona**
This contradicts defense lawyer Roy’s statements and Sheriff Bisnar’s testimony at the impeachment trial. Last Tuesday May 8, Atty Roy told Presiding Senator-Judge Juan Ponce Enrile that the point of Bisnar’s testimony was “to establish that the bulk of the shares of the Basa-Guidote Corporation are now owned by Carla Corona Castillo, the daughter of the Chief Justice.”
Please keep in mind what Atty Roy said as you read the rest of this piece. Roy – a law dean no less – said “that the bulk of the shares of the Basa-Guidote Corporation are now owned by Carla Corona Castillo, the daughter of the Chief Justice.”
It is for this reason that I am asking why – three years after his daughter Carla had bought the corporation in a court auction – CJ Corona continued to describe Basa-Guidote as his “wife’s family corporation” in his SALN.
For CJ Corona’s SALN as of December 31, 2007 which he filed in April 2008, he listed P6.5 million under “liabilities” and described the amount again as a “cash advance from wife’s family corporation.”
SALN 2007 of Chief Justice Corona**
Four years after his daughter Carla bought the corporation in a court auction, why did CJ Corona still describe Basa-Guidote as his “wife’s family corporation”?
In CJ Corona’s SALN as of December 31, 2008 which he filed in April 2009, he listed under “liabilities” a P5 million “cash advance from wife’s family corporation”. He did this even though five years had passed since his daughter Carla had bought the controlling shares of the company in cash at a court auction.
SALN 2008 of Chief Justice Corona**
For CJ Corona’s SALN as of December 31, 2009 which he filed in April 2010 – on the very eve he became Supreme Court Chief Justice of the Philippines – Corona declared P3 million under “liabilities”. Again, he described the sum as a “cash advance from wife’s family corporation” – six years after his daughter Carla took ownership and control of Basa-Guidote.
SALN 2009 of Chief Justice Corona**
But wait. There’s more.
Who really owns Basa-Guidote today?
Last January 22, 2012 when I first wrote about CJ Corona’s P11 million cash advance from Basa-Guidote, I interviewed one of Corona’s defense lawyers – Ramon Esguerra.
I asked Atty Esguerra about Basa-Guidote and this is what he told me:
That’s a family corporation of Mrs Corona. My understanding is that this is actually 98% owned by Mrs Corona already. My recollection is that there was some sort of intra-corporate controversy among the stockholders.
Atty Esguerra did not tell me then that it was owned by Carla Castillo. He said it was “actually 98% owned” by Cristina Corona.
When I heard this explanation from Atty Esguerra at that time, I asked him this follow-up question:
You said it’s 98% owned by Mrs Corona and the corporation is unregistered, does that mean he made utang to his own wife?
Esguerra replied to me then:
Hindi naman to his own wife. To her corporation.
So we have a corporation that, depending on which defense lawyer you’re talking to, is either owned by the mother or the daughter. By the way, the defense lawyers have so far not presented any corporate ownership papers to the impeachment court.
Perhaps the defense has yet another witness to present who will testify how Carla’s corporation ended up being owned by her mother today?
In any case, why did CJ Corona’s SALNs for seven consecutive years – 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 – state that he owed money to his wife’s family corporation?
Why did SEVEN SALNs he filed consecutively from 2004 to 2010 never disclose that he was in fact returning the “cash advance” to his daughter’s corporation – at least if you go by Sheriff Bisnar’s testimony and defense lawyer Roy?
Please note that even if it was his wife who had acquired Basa-Guidote from Carla, the SALNs of CJ Corona should have stated at some point that his cash advance was to due for payment to his “wife’s corporation”, and not to his “wife’s family corporation.”
Going by the narration of facts presented by the defense and its witness last Tuesday, the word “family” was legally erased on September 30,2003 at a court auction presided over by Sheriff Bisnar and participated in by Corona’s wife Cristina and daughter Carla. And this was only days after CJ Corona had obtained his P11 million cash advance.
Here is my first story last January on Chief Justice Corona’s P11 million cash advance from Basa-Guidote, where I interviewed defense lawyer Ramon Esguerra and where I accidentally unlocked a messy family feud.
Arnel says
Idol talaga ni corona si GMA. Pareho sila ng
drama. Pa wheel chair wheel chair din. Mas
iyakin nga lang si corona. Pa awa effect.
Minda Nao says
NATIONAL NEWS AND BANK ACTIVITIES, COINCIDENCE?
GLORIA’S MR BAGMAN? BRING ME MY BAG (TO THE TUNE OF MR SANDMAN)
2004
NEWS:Presidential Election campaign Arroyo vs Fernando Poe
Bank activities:
4/1/ 2004 $ $215,788.00
4/2/ 2004 $315,788.00
5/11/04 $409,188.00
5/12/04 ($90,812.00)
5/14/04 $409,188.00
5/14/04 ($90,812.00)
2007
NEWS: April 21: ZTE-NBN telecommunications project contract signed.
NEWS May 2007 Philippines general elections New Senate in place, –
Minor news first recorded series of My Way karaoke bars killings
Bank activities
5/29/07 $208,730.22
NEWS: Week of 7/19/07 Nationwide barangay elections registrations, newly elected Senators start work
Bank activities
7/19/07 $221,430.22
NEWS: Arroyo declared July 27 as iglesia ni cristo day
NEWS: Mining industry transferred to office of President
Bank activities
7/27/07 $321,430.22
NEWS Week of Erap Verdict plunder
Bank activities
9/3/07 $341,430.22
NEWS: Impeachment news in the house / cash gift charges on congressmen Villarosa
Bank activities
12/21/07 $391,430.22
2008
NEWS: Joint Seismic Undertaking on Spratlys /JDV lost position Merging of Lakas CMD and KAMPI
Bank activities
3/5/08 $421,730.22
NEWS: joint seismic undertaking, senators questioning legality
Bank activities
4/17/08 $445,730.22
2010
NEWS: national elections, Imelda and arroyo runs for congress
Bank activities
3/12/10 $764,152.46
NEWS: Week of Corona oath taking (may 17 2010)
Bank activities
5/25/10 $728,968.21
NEWS: SC decides Cityhood laws unconstitutional reversed (aug 23)
Bank activities
8/27/10 $798,468.21
NEWS: Week of SC oral arguments on Truth Commission
Bank activity
8/31/10 $764,603.33
NEWS: Week of Mercedita Gutierrez Impeachment
NEWS:9/24/2010 Start of impeachment Mercedita Gutierrez in House
NEWS 9/27/2010 New SC en banc clerk of court custodian Enriqueta Vidal
NEWS 9/21/2010 SC starts oral arguments on Mercedita Gutierrez impeachment petition
NEWS 10/06/2010 final oral arguments Mercedita Gutierrez case
Bank activity
9/23/10 $721,312.08
NEWS 12/09/2010 SC rules Truth Commission unconstitutional
NEWS 12/14/2010 SC affirms return of Leyte Marcos mansion
NEWS 12/15/2010 SC affirms acquittal of Hubert Webb
Bank Activities:
12/22/10 $736,612.08
NEWS: 1/11/2011 SC rejects oral arguments for MR for Hubert Webb acquittal
Bank Activities:
1/2011 $716,733.33
NEWS: Ampatuan massacre, comptroller Garcia/Ligot, PNoy criticizing SC decisions on Truth Commission
Bank activities
1/19/11 $746,733.33
1/19/11 $1,005,930.89
1/20/11 $1,178,967.96
1/21/11 $1,190,667.96
NEWS: 2/08/2011 Ex AFP chief Angelo Reyes commits suicide
NEWS: 2/27/2011 SC OK’s Mikey Arroyo to represent security guard group in congress
NEWS: 03/22/11 Mercedita Gutierrez impeached by congress
Bank activities
3/31/11 $1,202,667.96
NEWS: 7/25/11 President Aquino State of the Nation address
Bank activities:
7/27/11 $1,267,167.96
NEWS: 10/11/2011 Philippine 2007 Poll fraud continues
NEWS 10/16/11 Aquino ratings increase
NEWS 11/09/11 Arroyo medical trip denied
Bank activities
11/16/11 $1,306,167.96
NEWS: 11/18/11 Arroyo arrested for Electoral sabotage
Bank activities
11/24/11 $1,133,558.38
NEWS: 12/09/11 Arroyo detained at Veterans Memorial Hospital
NEWS: 12/12/11 Corona impeached by House of Representatives
Bank activities
12/12/11 $998,199.37
12/13/11 $609,428.15
12/15/11 $1,585,626.23
12/15/11 $1,120,626.23
12/15/11 $777,433.61
12/15/11 $705,404.28
12/15/11 $355,404.28
12/19/11 ($132,593.81)
12/20/11 ($820,242.36)
raissa says
Interesting.
The depositors to his bank accounts will have to be matched.
jun 2 says
Kaya nga maraming sa kabila ng mga katotohanan, they need this man in 2013! kaya dito kitang kita natin ang kanilang pag hahanda, again para i blackmail ang buong bansa at mag patuloy sila sa pag gahasa sa kaban ng bayan. Sa pag upo ng OMB, very candid ang ilang senator, takot na takot sa naging hakbang ng ombudsman at ang naging reply ng AMLC. We need to work more, as we can see it, pospos ang kanilang pag kilos, na dapat sana tayong taong bayan ay ganon din!
Eber Redi says
@jun 2
tama ka pare, mukhang siya ang puntahan pag may election….lalo na siguro pag may electoral protest na maaring umakyat sa SC…. hindi malayong sila Bongbong nagbigay rin tsaka si MDS and those Senators na halos makipagbuntalan sa mga witness na laban kay Corona na nagkamali lang umupo sa witness…….sisiw lang pala yung Basa guidote compared to this..hindi malayong pagbintangan niya rin si Pnoy an me patago..sabi nya siya lang ang nakaka alam tulad ng 100 million bribe nila….
baka pati si Pope sabihin nya may patago…
mabagsik pala pag pinagsama ang gahamang economist at gahang seraniko ng transistor..wasak ang bayan…
pelang says
wow! Minda Nao, kuha mo talaga! ang galing! dapat kasama ka sa prosecution taga imbestiga. kaya naman pala kating-kati na si Goyang na makatakas at kung anu-anong sakit na naman ang nararamdaman. malapit nang mabisto ng husto.
Deng says
@Minda Nao,
Wow ! Nice presentation, man. Too much activities, too much money, can he be the bagman of the GMA mafia? Could it be a conspiracy?
Eber Redi says
@Deng
The evil genius of their partnership is the employment of a constitutional principle: JUDICIARY INDEPENDENCE.
This they implemented by the non accountability of their financial activities and expenses as well as non transparency and nondisclosure of SALNs.
So Corona was the perfect conduits of their groups’ funds as well as bribes and
other illegal funds that Corona himself receive from cases he is involved in. No wonder as reported here, this caught the attention of international anti money laundering organizations monitoring money trail of terrorists organizations and alerted our own AMLC.
Perfect crime until….
Ella Tovara says
very nice presentation. grabe talaga everytime merong mga political happenings sa bansa, big as in big amounts of money is moved from one place to another. grabe talagang pagnanakaw at pangungurakot.
sana po makita ito at mabasa tapos maintindihan ng mga senador-judges para patalsikin na po ang kumag na kurakot na corona.
Leona says
Very interesting! But are the “transactions” withdrawals or deposits on each date? I guess the one for “12/12/11 to 12/20/11” are indeed WITHDRAWALS amounting to
$7, 105, 008. 32.
Seven Million One Hundred Five Thousands and Thirty Eight/32 !!! In PESOS my comput is P305, 555, 344.00+ . CORONA “withdrew”
THREE HUNDRED FIVE MILLION FIVE HUNDRED FIFTY FIVE THOUSAND and THREE HUNDRED FORTY-FOUR pesos on those dates? What bank is this?
That’s a lot of money! My wishful thinking blurs me!
JiroArturo says
@Leona
Withdrawals on said dates Dec 2011 total $6,103,880.11. Pesos withdrawal = P161,151,897.64
Leona says
I may have to “change” my cell phn’s ‘calculator’ then…mas grabi pala itong calculator ko kaysa akin!
simon olivares says
isama mo na 10/ 4/ 2011 FASAP decision reversal. Teka, kelan ba pumasok yung Allied bank account nya? Nakareflect ba sa records?
Sam says
something from rappler
——————————
Is Corona’s defense team ‘sinking’?
According to Ronny Roy, the dad of Judd “Judd is fed up. He never wanted [Ombudsman Conchita] Morales to testify, at least he wud’ve wanted her LAST after Risa [Hontiveros], [Harvey Keh], etc.but was overruled by [defense team lead counsel Serafin] Cuevas.”
(text message send to Harry Roque)
——————————————-
kaya pala wala si Roy that day when the Ombudsman took the witness stand.
Leona says
Ohhhh…how Cuevas cried a lot for approving to present Ombudsman Morales and first among those witnesses! He must have had a horrible nightmare the following the night in bed!
What caused this blunder? Over confident sila! Never never make that mistake in trial. Why they thought that Ombuds Morales had nothing to give?
The defense is now showing fatigue. Tired. Cannot think and focus. They’re going to have a long rest after this proceedings is over.
Sam says
@Leona
Tama ka dyan, actually also in the article, Roy was so fed up daw due to corona won’t do a rehearsal before taking the witness stand.
baycas says
Time to do an Al Pacino?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078718/plotsummary
duquemarino says
@baycas
I saw this movie and liked it, but will cuevas do a turn-around? Maybe, if his vertigo attacks when he is presenting the summation. Just a wishful thinking, he he he. Gandang twist nito pag nangyari.
Leona says
Mr. Cuevas “doing a turn-around?” I doubt it very much. One real good lawyer will be praying for guts to that! But Artur Kirkland’s situation is that he believes his clients are innocent. Does Mr. Cuevas have the same belief?
That is a big Q.
I’ve not seen the movie; just read what that website gave about it. Thanks.
netty says
Maybe he is also weary that he would end it all, baka nasa magic brown envelope ang WMD. beware!!
Leona says
Taking the witness stand, I gave my piece on the ENGLISH RULE in contrast to the AMERICAN RULE. What our courts adopts or follows is the ENGLISH RULE. It is somewhere here down. I just hope this point will not be a long debate/argument between the defense and the prosecution; might also be with the Senate or with Hon. Enrile.
Renato Pinokyo says
THE POLITICS OF ARROYO AND CORONA
NEWS:Election campaign Arroyo vs Fernando Poe
Bank activities:
4/1/ 2004 $ $215,788.00
4/2/ 2004 $315,788.00
5/11/04 $409,188.00
5/12/04 ($90,812.00)
5/14/04 $409,188.00
5/14/04 ($90,812.00)
From the above revealed bank activities by TJ, I thought of going over some news items at that time and I came to this item which displayed the sheer gall of this partnership to cheat their way to power. No direct link to Corona but the money angle and the date is interesting.It is thus important that TJ be out of this axis of corruption, otherwise his acquittal will be a perpetuation of the politics that enslaved the Philippines for a long long time..
Source:
http://web.archive.org/web/20060101120753/http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/topofthehour.aspx?StoryId=10350
Yung dagdag, yung dagdag’
The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism granted permission to abs-cbnNEWS.com to publish this entry from PCIJ’s blog. For other stories visit http://www.pcij.org/blog/
By Sheila Coronel, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
THE president’s voice sounded urgent. She was muttering under her breath. [On Wednesday] morning, using sound enhancement, we listened again to the “Hello, Garci” recording and heard clearly for the first time what Mrs. Arroyo told election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano in a conversation that took place at 11:17 p.m. on May 31, 2004.
That phone call began with the President relaying to Garcillano the information that the opposition was trying to get Namfrel (National Citizens Movement for Free Elections) copies of municipal certificates of canvass. Garcillano reassured her that Namfrel is “now sympathetic to us.”
The president’s reply is garbled in the recording, as she lowered her voice and muttered. We asked a sound engineer to enhance the sound for us. We listened again and this is what we heard her telling Garcilliano: “… Namfrel does not tally…pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag (but you know, the padding, the padding).”
[PCIJ didn’t put this in earlier versions of the transcript because we were not sure until now.]
This is the only time in all the 15 phone calls that Mrs. Arroyo made to Garcillano between May 26 and June 10 that she actually used the word, dagdag.
Some of the president’s calls dealt with her anxiety about the count and her winning margin (“Will I still get more than 1 M?” she famously asked “Garci” at 9:23 a.m. on May 29).
The May 31 phone call was more direct. She actually referred to votes being padded. While she did not directly say that she had directed the padding or that she knew her votes had been padded, the purpose of the conversation appears to be to assuage her worry that the padding would not discovered if the Namfrel documents did not tally with the certificates of canvass.
Many of the presidential calls in the Hello Garci tapes dealt with Mrs. Arroyo’s concern that the count reflected in various election documents — statements of votes and certificates of canvass — did not match. She expressed this worry about the documents from Basilan, Lanao del Sur and Sulu. She was worried because the mismatch in the figures might be seen by the opposition and used by them in alleging fraud by the ruling party.
The particular conversation where she talked about dagdag seems to be along the same lines. She was fretting about the possibility that the opposition would get hold of Namfrel documents (Namfrel gets the sixth copy of the precinct-level election returns) and discover that these do not match with the certificates of canvass, which contain the aggregated counts of all the precincts in a municipality, city or province.
This is why Garcillano had to reassure the president that Namfrel is “now sympathetic to us.”
In her reply, she wanted more reassurance. “Pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag,” she said.
When this call was made on May 31, most of the certificates of canvass had already been submitted to Congress. It would have meant trouble if the count reflected in these certificates were questioned either by Namfrel or the opposition, based on their own copies of the election returns. At this point, the president seemed to be concerned about two things: 1) that the spurious documents would not be discovered; and 2) that the counts in the places where special elections were held and the counting delayed would show her as the winner.
Special elections were conducted in late May in some towns and barangay in Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. Some of the president’s phone calls dealt with the counting in these places.
The content of those phone calls was previously reported in this blog. Here are the transcript and enhanced audio of the “dagdag” phone call.
Conversation between Gary (V. Garcillano) and an unidentified female believed to be GMA (Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) on 31 23:17 hotel May 2004
Garcillano: Hello, ma’am.
GMA: Hello, tsaka ano yung kabila, they’re trying to get the Namfrel copies of the Municipal COCs.
Garcillano: Namfrel copies ho?
GMA: Uhm-um.
Garcillano: Ay wala naman, ok naman ang Namfrel sa atin. They are now sympathetic to us.
GMA (mumbling): Oo, oo … (garbled) …Namfrel does not tally. Pero yun nga, yung dagdag, yung dagdag.
Garcillano: Oho, we will get an advance copy ho natin kung anong hong kwan nila.
GMA: Oo, oo.
Garcillano: Sige po.
Source:
http://web.archive.org/web/20060101120753/http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/topofthehour.aspx?StoryId=10350
Sam says
another big problem for the corona
———————————————
from inquirer (a portion of the article)
—————————————————
Ana Basa: We will get back what is rightfully ours
Guilty or not in the impeachment trial, Chief Justice Renato Corona, along with his wife, Cristina, and daughter Carla, will have to pay for their “illegal takeover” of the Basa-Guidote Enterprises Inc. (BGEI) from its stockholders and for “squandering” its finances.
Thus said an heir of the corporation’s majority stockholders, Ana Basa.
“We will not let this go away. We will get back what is rightfully ours,” declared Basa, the second of nine children of Jose Maria Basa III, one of the original stockholders of BGEI. Ana called up this reporter, who is on an East-West Center fellowship grant, from Las Vegas, Nevada, where she has been in the casino business for over 20 years, to talk about the Basa family’s course of action against the Coronas in light of revelations about the company in the Corona impeachment trial.
Basa said the Coronas probably did not expect the Basa family and their relatives to unite and shoot back considering the Chief Justice’s position in the judiciary following their “long years of persecution and prosecution.
Sam says
Lagot na ang mga Corona … galit na ang mga BASA
Sam says
@Raissa
nag double post hehehe paki delete na lang itong na post ko. someone has post the same article na .. sorry
kalakala says
CORONA IMPEACHMENT TRIAL
Ana Basa: We will get back what is rightfully ours
By Cynthia D. Balana
Philippine Daily Inquirer
HONOLULU—Guilty or not in the impeachment trial, Chief Justice Renato Corona, along with his wife, Cristina, and daughter Carla, will have to pay for their “illegal takeover” of the Basa-Guidote Enterprises Inc. (BGEI) from its stockholders and for “squandering” its finances, an heir of the corporation’s majority stockholders said.
‘All liable’
According to Ana, their lawyers said all three Coronas, as well as the regional trial judge and the sheriff that executed the auction of her family’s majority shares in the corporation were all liable under the law.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/196853/ana-basa-we-will-get-back-what-is-rightfully-ours
Pedro says
Ana Basa Says ” We will get back what is rightfully ours :- ( Per Inquirer)
HONOLULU—Guilty or not in the impeachment trial, Chief Justice Renato Corona, along with his wife, Cristina, and daughter Carla, will have to pay for their “illegal takeover” of the Basa-Guidote Enterprises Inc. (BGEI) from its stockholders and for “squandering” its finances, an heir of the corporation’s majority stockholders said.
“We will not let this go away. We will get back what is rightfully ours,” declared Ana Basa, the second of nine children of Jose Maria Basa III, one of the original stockholders of BGEI. Ana called up this reporter, who is on an East-West Center fellowship grant, from Las Vegas, Nevada, where she has been in the casino business for over 20 years, to talk about the Basa family’s course of action against the Coronas in light of revelations about the company in the Corona impeachment trial.
Basa said the Coronas probably did not expect the Basa family and their relatives to unite and shoot back considering the Chief Justice’s position in the judiciary following their “long years of persecution and prosecution.
The US-based Basa family has been meeting with their lawyers in the United States and in the Philippines about their course of action against the Coronas to challenge in court the “illegal” transfer of BGEI ownership to her niece Carla for a measly sum of P28,000, as well as the sale of a BGEI property worth millions of pesos to Carla for also the measly sum of P28,000 through an auction.
Ana said her family was relieved by the fact that the truth about Corona and Cristina, who is Ana’s cousin, had finally come out.
‘All liable’
According to Ana, their lawyers said all three Coronas, as well as the regional trial judge and the sheriff that executed the auction of her family’s majority shares in the corporation were all liable under the law.
During the impeachment trial, court Sheriff Bisnar testified under oath that he delivered both the writ of execution and garnishment of the Basa shares on the same day at an address given to him by Cristina, which was actually the address of the latter.
“That address was Asuncion’s address. Bahay naman nila Cristina iyon (Cristina also stayed in that house). She grew up there. Hindi namin bahay iyon (That is not our house),” Ana said.
“My parents never received any type of notice. My dad would have never allowed BGEI shares to be auctioned off because that was his promise to his mother. He would have figured out another way to pay it. Remember the court issue of writ of execution and garnishment eight months after my dad passed away.”
Ana believed they now have a fighting chance to pursue their cases in court against the Coronas “without obstruction and harassment,” unlike before when Renato enjoyed the confidence of two former presidents—Fidel Ramos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
“We were told by the lawyers that they are all liable to the stockholders, especially Cristina, for gross negligence and bad faith in directing the affairs of BGEI for allowing the shares to go for a mere P28,000. They said she is also guilty of acquiring personal or pecuniary interest in conflict with her duty as a trustee,” Basa said.
‘Highly questionable’
She said the sale itself of the BGEI property in Sampaloc was highly questionable since up to now, there was still no decision in the probate case, which Cristina herself filed against them.
She said other BGEI properties in the same area, which were levied by the Coronas, were actually in the name of her father, Jose Maria III, up to now, that was why the Coronas could not sell it.
Ana expressed the belief that her cousin could have not done all of the abuses and manipulations “without the backing of the Chief Justice.”
This, she said, was precisely the reason why her aunts and uncle decided to sell their shares to her father, the most successful businessman among the five children of Rosario Basa. Sister Concepcion and Sister Flory lived in the convents, Asuncion was a housewife, while Mario Basa had a bonzai business and supplied bonzai at the Atrium in Makati.
“Dad’s siblings said they did not want headaches because magulo si Cristina (Cristina was troublesome), tenants were complaining, so they decided to go sell their shares and Dad bought them because Lola’s wish was for the Basa family to continue to own and control the corporation that’s why our family became the majority stockholders,” Ana said.
‘A gift to Dad’
Ana also addressed the claim of Corona’s defense lawyers that her father removed Asuncion’s name from the title of a property in Libis (Eastwood), Quezon City.
“What title is she talking about? That property in Libis was a gift by my lola to Dad when he graduated with a degree in animal husbandry from the University of California in Davis. But that property in Libis, binayaran din ng Dad sa Lola over the years kaya nakapangalan lang sa kaniya (But Dad paid Lola for that property in Libis over the years, that’s why it is in his name). Dad was able to pay because we had a farm, we had poultry, piggery and he was very successful. My dad was an amazing man, you would have liked him,” she said.
On the Chief Justice’s reported multiple dollar accounts as revealed by the Ombudsman and the Anti-Money Laundering Council, Basa said they were just as shocked as the rest of the country upon learning this.
“The defense is simply doing damage control by deflecting the focus away from Rene Corona, They’ve blamed black propaganda, the President, Carpio, Ombdusman, etc.,” she added.
Kim says
……“My parents never received any type of notice. …” the magical notice.
Sam says
lagot ang mga corona, galit na ang mga BASA.
Leona says
Throw the heavy wrench at them!
Turn the tables around!
Go, give ’em some real headaches this time!
File the complaint and attach the properties!
And hang ’em high!
Chavydada says
A MESSAGE FOR CJ CORONA ON THE EVE OF HIS SENATE APPEARANCE
I have three words for you, CJ Corona. “REMEMBER THE ALAMO” (Battlecry of US Troops under Gen. Houston).
ALAM MO namang mai-impeach ka pag tinanggap mo ang ‘midnight appointment”. No less than Fr. Bernas cautioned.
ALAM MO namang ang SALN ay sinumpaang dokumento kaya’t dapat ay wasto, tapat, sapat, at makatotohanan ang paglalahad nito.
ALAM MO namang pag ginamit mo ang Basa-Guidote Enterprises, Inc. sa iyong depensa ay malalahad kung paano ito nabili ng iyong anak sa ‘irregular’ na pamamaraan.
ALAM MO namang highly intelligent witness si Ombudsman Morales, ay bakit mo ipinatawag bilang defense witness.
ALAM MO namang maraming lawyers ang nagpakadalubhasa sa Constitution, Corporation Law, Bank Secrecy Law, Anti-Money Laundering Law, Ombudsman Law, at iba pang law, bukod kay Miriam at Atty Cuevas.
ALAM MO namang walang lihim na di nabubunyag sa takdang panahon.
ALAM MO namang public office is a public trust, kaya dapat ay walang pagdududa sa sinumang nakaupong opisyal, lalo na ang Chief Justice ng Supreme Court.
ALAM MO namang pag-upo mo sa witness stand ay maaari ka nang matanong ng mga Senador, kahit na sa mga bagay na wala sa impeachment complaint.
ALAM MO rin kayang beyond technicalities, alam na nang marami ang katotohanan, subalit naghihintay lamang ng iyong sasabihin.
YES, CJ, “REMEMBER THE ALAMO”. Alam na alam mo ang pinapasukan mo.
amante_rador says
@chavvydada,
alamo ba? alam ni corona na mailulusot nya ang kaso nya. gaya nang mga palusot nila nung panahon nila ni gma. hanggang ngayon ay iyon ang paniwala nya…
Rene-Ipil says
Chavydada @436
At the Alamo, the last man standing was the legendary Davy Crocket , an excellent shooter and a Texas Congressman. While he was about to be executed by General Sta Ana, he was asked to say his last statement. Davy Crocket told the general to surrender, lay down their arms and go back to Mexico. He also warned the Mexicans that he was a loud screamer. That was when the Mexicans riddled him with bullets. In the end, General Sta Ana surrendered Texas to General Houston.
At the senate, Corona will be the lone man at the witness stand. He will make a statement first before testifying. He will ask the senators to surrender their power to try him or else he will scream loud and squeal all the names of the senators and their business partners or protégées who deposited the dollars indicated in the AMLC report to Ombudsman.
Will the senate convict and execute Corona or surrender and capitulate to his demand for acquittal?
Springwoodman says
Therefore he cannot be forgiven for he knows what he is doing.
Sam says
Question
Defense lawyer Rico Quicho said the supposed records of Corona’s dollar accounts as bared by Ombudsman Conchita Morales have not been accepted yet as evidence by the impeachment court.
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Since Ombudsman Conchita Morales is defense’s witness, should her testimony and documents presented be formally offered to be considered “accepted”?
baycas says
Despite Cuevas’ difficulty of ascertaining Carpio-Morales as hostile witness, Presiding Officer Enrile LIBERALLY ruled that she be declared “hostile” witness in order NOT to belabor the issue. (She actually didn’t pass as such if Cuevas’ reasoning is to be considered.)
The prosecution will offer the Ombudsman’s revelations inasmuch as her testimony will strengthen the case of the accusers, the Filipino people, as represented by the 188+ Congressmen.
Leona says
After the Defense rest their case, the prosecution having marked the documents presented during Defense’s in-chief and the testimony of defense witnesses, will of course be offered by prosecution as “additional evidence” or Exhibits for the Prosecution. Mr. Rico Quicho’s statement is correct, “not accepted yet” but it will be later on. So, there is nothing to be apprehensive about. He is the one apprehensive about it because it is going to be accepted as evidence by the impeachment court.
Rene-Ipil says
[email protected]
Testimonies are offered and admitted as evidence during their presentation unless ruled as inadmissible or excluded by the rules and our laws. For example: hearsay evidence and products of illegal search.
Rene-Ipil says
Documentary exhibits are formally offered as evidence after completion of the testimonies in chief or in rebuttal, if any.