Secretary to the Mayor Roger Balo yesterday said renegotiation between the city and the Bacolod Real Estate Authority is still a possibility if the Sangguniang Panlungsod cannot act on the takeover option.

Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia said he believes this is not a closed case, Balo said. Without preempting the action of the SP members, going back to renegotiation table is still a possibility if they cannot decide on the takeover option, he said. The ball is now in their court, Balo added.

Balo said the P800,000 annual rental of BREDCO as stated in the 1995 contract should have been reviewed by the city every five years. "I think we could not be blamed for the failure to do so by whoever were the representatives of the city then," he said. We are trying to correct what was wrong in the first place, he added.

Balo said Leonardia agrees that BREDCO president Simplicio Palanca did an amazing job in reclaiming the area, that is why, despite the call for a takeover, which was a very popular decision at that time, he decided on the renegotiation, because he acknowledges the efforts of Palanca. Otherwise, the city could have taken over the port because it was popular stand, he said.

CONTRACT VIOLATION

Balo said that although he agrees that it is the court that can determine whether BREDCO has committed a violation, it is apparent in the merger of BREDCO with Top Harbor International Inc., which is now the surviving corporation, that it, indeed, violated the contract. He said that, according to City Legal Officer Allan Zamora, BREDCO was given the exclusive right to reclaim the foreshore land of Bacolod and, with the violations it had committed, it unilaterally ended its contract with the city.

Former Bacolod Mayor Rolando Villamor said he opposes the takeover option. "I believe the SP will not support the takeover option so we will go back to square one," he said.

Villamor said negotiation should continue until both parties come up with a fruitful solution. Even big battles end at the negotiating table and he believes continued negotiation will be the best solution for BREDCO and the city, he added.

Villamor said the 1995 contract between the city and BREDCO was signed by former Mayor Alfredo Montelibano Jr. and ratified by the SP on June 1, 1995. The contract is not flawed, but the problem is in the implementation because the city failed to review the terms and conditions of the contract after five years, he said.

'NOT REASONABLE'

Villamor said the P800,000 was the reasonable rental at that time, 11 years ago. He said the P1.4 million proposal of BREDCO is not reasonable and should be higher, or about P5 million. The city's P17.5 million offer is too much, he said.

Meanwhile, Balo said it is unfair of Councilor Elmer Sy to say that the Mayor is not sincere in his negotiation with BREDCO. He said that all throughout the 60-day negotiation, although Sy had been present, he has not contributed anything to the discussions. It was only at the end of the negotiation that Sy recommended that BREDCO should pay P2 million but he could not explain his basis, Balo said.

Balo said it is unfair of Sy to say that the Mayor is insincere when he even put his political career or the line in the negotiation, knowing it was an unpopular decision. But he wanted to give the relationship between the city and BREDCO a chance, he said.

OBJECTIVE REVIEW

Councilor Al Victor Espino said he signed the document for the takeover position after he had examined the merits of the arguments of both parties. "I believe entirely in the recommendations stated in the document, and that Bacolod City owns the port," he said.

"As an independent member of Council, I was sincere in the creation of the city negotiating panel that is why I agreed to be a sitting member of it, " Espino said. He said he reviewed the merits of the case objectively and based his decision on facts presented to them.*CGS

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