Hanjin’s bribe offer bared; Gloria scolded Mayor

May 2, 2008

Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Corp., the South Korean firm embroiled in the controversial construction of condominium units in the forest reserve area in Subic, is in for more serious problems as the company earned the ire of Senate probers again, this time stemming from a reported bribe offer to a local official in Mindanao.

Reports said the Korean firm allegedly offered a P400-million contract to a municipal mayor in Misamis Oriental in exchange for a reversal of his order stopping the construction of a $2-billion shipyard which had not secured the necessary permits.

This came after Senate investigators, led by Sen. Pia Cayetano, Thursday said Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) officials were found to have allegedly committed grave violations in allowing Hanjin to construct two high-rise condominium buildings within its forest reserve area and the firm would likely be facing numerous serious charges.

Hanjin is likely to be slapped with more charges, according to Cayetano, chairman of the environment committee in the upper chamber, as it was found to have started ground works for the said structure even before environmental

clearance or permit was issued to Hanjin.

Cayetano yesterday expressed outrage over the reported bribe from Hanjin to municipal Mayor Paulino Emano of Misamis Oriental, in exchange for his reversal in stopping the construction of the shipyard.

But Cayetano said she was more outraged at the fact that even as Emano bared the bribe offer, and informed Mrs. Arroyo on this, the President even had the effrontery to scold the municipal mayor, who was merely doing the right thing, and following the law.

“I am outraged to hear that Hanjin offered such favors to the local official to allow them (Hanjin) to continue construction even without first securing a municipal building permit and environmental compliance certificate (ECC), among others. These are basic requirements under the law, regardless of whether you’re a local or foreign investor,” said the senator, referring to the recent revelation made by Tagoloan Mayor Emano on the P400-million contract allegedly offered to him by Hanjin.

“But what I found more revealing was when President Arroyo even scolded Mayor Emano (last Wednesday in Cagayan de Oro City) for standing his ground, even if he only acted in accordance with his duties as an elected public official.

“The President also allegedly ignored him when he reported the matter about Hanjin’s offer,” Cayetano pointed out.

The President is also said to have ignored the baring by then National Economic Development authority (Neda) chief Romulo Neri of a P200 million bribe offer allegedly made by then Commission on Elections chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr., for Neri to push the ZTE-National Broadband Network project, which has been found by the Senate to have been kickback-laden to the tune of $135 million or so.

Mrs. Arroyo then had Neri invoke executive privilege to stop him from saying anything more about the corruption-tainted NBN project.

“If these reports are true, then there are clearly three disturbing trends here,” she said, enumerating the three, saying that “The first points to a trend showing Hanjin’s utter refusal to abide by our laws, as it has been involved in a similar controversy in Subic.

“Second is government’s apparent tolerance of violations of national and environmental laws allegedly committed by this investor.

“And the third, and most disturbing, is the President playing deaf and dumb again on what could possibly be another bribery attempt brought to her attention,” she pointed out.

Cayetano noted that Hanjin is also under fire by environmentalists for constructing two condominiums beginning January 2007 inside the protected Subic forest reserve without an ECC. Hanjin applied for an ECC permit only in March 2007 and was granted the same by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) in July 2007.

By then, Hanjin’s 22-storey condominium was already eight floors high, while the 12-storey condominium was already four floors high.

On the third trend, she recalled an instance at the Senate’s NBN-ZTE hearing when Neri reported to the President the bribe offer.

Hanjin had planned to operate a $2 billion shipyard that would extend from Tagoloan to Villanueva in Misamis Oriental. Its training center alone would occupy eight hectares, while the planned shipyard would be on a 70-hectare property in Tagoloan and on a 400-hectare property in Villanueva.

The mayor said he ordered the suspension of the project since the South Korean firm failed to secure the environment documents.

But the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, claimed it had already issued Hanjin an ECC, allowing the resumption of the construction.

Hanjin also complained that its employee was “manhandled and roughed-up” by Emano’s men.

But Cayetano said: “We should send a clear message to investors that they are welcome but they must abide by our laws. If they do not want to follow our laws then they should leave our country,” she concluded.

The senator earlier said that they will note in their committee report that it was SBMA itself that committed grave violations of the law and dereliction of their duty in protecting the environment.

Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno, for his part, yesterday said he had ordered the Philippine National Police to investigate charges and countercharges of extortion and bribery in connection with the proposed construction of $2-billion shipyard by Hanjin in Mindanao.

Puno also directed the task force headed by Police Director Jefferson Soriano of the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM) to investigate the assault of a company driver of the South Korea-based Hanjin in Misamis Oriental allegedly by men connected with the office of the Tagaloan town mayor Emano.

Chief Supt. Raul Castaneda, who heads the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), has been designated deputy head of the task force.

Puno claimed it was the President herself who had ordered an immediate investigation of the incidents after expressing deep concern over the possibility that these could seriously hurt national efforts at investment promotion and job creation.

This Hanjin project, which is expected to create 40,000 jobs, will boost prospects for the Philippines becoming a major shipbuilder in the world, he said.

Hanjin had started working on the project, said Puno, by clearing the eight-hectare project site, but this activity has since been halted.

“Right now, they (Hanjin) are not inclined to continue with the project,” Puino stressed.

“The President, who was furious over these charges of extortion, said nobody should be spared in this investigation,” Puno said.

“The conflicting statements of the mayors and Hanjin officials on the charges of bribery and extortion are puzzling to say the least,” the DILG chief claimed.

But it was strange, he added, that the bribery charges came after the weekend incident involving the assault on a Hanjin employee by men allegedly identified with one of the mayors.

“It does not make sense for a group that claims to have been bribed to respond by ordering the attack on a company driver of the alleged briber,” Puno pointed out.

Puno said the President ordered an investigation of the incidents after Hanjin officials complained that the mayors of Tagaloan and Villanueva in Misamis Oriental had extorted money from them in exchange for giving their approvals of environmental and business permits for the shipyard project.

The DILG chief said that after being confronted by the President on this matter, the mayor of Tagaloan claimed that it was Hanjin which had offered him a bribe of P400 million.

Puno said that to maintain the integrity of the investigation, PNP chief Director General Avelino Razon Jr. has ordered the administrative relief of the local chiefs of police in the towns of Tagaloan and Villanueva pending the conduct of the investigation by the task force.

Puno said Senior Supt. Joel Coronel of the CIDG, who is also a lawyer, was set to leave yesterday for Misamis Oriental to start the probe into the Hanjin incident.

By Angie M. Rosales With Gina Peralta-Elorde

and Tribune wires

source: http://tribune.net.ph/headlines/20080503hed1.html

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