Court gives Balili widow five days to put back P14M

Friday, December 17, 2010

A TRIAL court judge yesterday ordered the widow of the late Luis Balili to return within five days part of the money she withdrew from a bank last Dec. 7 to replenish the P37 million, which represents the claim of the Provincial Government.

Judge Ester Veloso of the Regional Trial Court Branch 6 directed Amparo Balili, Luis’ widow, to return P14 million of the P44.483 million she had withdrawn.

The P14 million would be added to the remaining P24 million deposited in the Landbank of the Philippines under the Balili Estate, to cover the Capitol’s claim for a refund.

But in their pleading to the court, Amparo’s lawyers, Carlo Pontico Fortuna and Mark Werner Rosal, disclosed that P39.538 million of the amount withdrawn by their client is “actually unaccounted for.”

“(The above amount) is still with the executor (Romeo), representing the amount he has reserved for the claim of the Province of Cebu,” the lawyers said in their motion.

Retire

They opposed the application of Romeo Balili to retire as executor of the Balili Estate.

They said that since the payee of the two checks—amounting to P98,926,800—issued by the Province to pay for the Balili property was Romeo, the court should prohibit the executor from retiring. They said the executor has yet to render an accounting of the estate.

While the Balili heirs have withdrawn more than P44 million, Amparo’s lawyers said the executor still has about P54 million to account for. The sum, they said, is more than enough to cover the Province’s refund claim.

During the hearing on Romeo’s application to retire as executor of the Balili Estate yesterday, Veloso rebuked the former for submitting a “not faithful accounting” in the amended Declaration of Heirship and Revised Partial Project of Partition of the Balili Estate.

Veloso told Romeo that, in his revised partial partition submitted to the court, the executor indicated the P44.483 million, which represents shares of Amparo and that of the Balili heirs and less the P37-million claim of the Capitol.

Accounting

“You could not question it (revised partial partition) because your client (Amparo) signed it,” Veloso told Romeo.

Romeo assured Veloso yesterday that he will submit on Monday a proper accounting of the cash related to the Balili property sale that is deposited at Landbank.

Amparo’s lawyers asked the court to grant the motion for accounting the Capitol filed “with a reservation” to hold the Province jointly liable with the executor for any missing funds that were not paid by Romeo.

They also asked the court to order Romeo to submit documents relative to the cash flow of the sale proceeds of the Balili property worth P98.9 million.

In his pleading filed in court earlier, Romeo revealed there’s “not enough funds to replenish” the P37 million refund sought by the Province, after Amparo withdrew P44.483 from Banco de Oro (BDO) F. Ramos branch last Dec. 7.

Romeo has disclosed that Amparo already got P24 million as an “advance,” representing 50 percent of her share in the estate, including the P15.5 million she later got.

Romeo said the Balilis earned only P80.5 million from the sale because P18.3 million went to taxes, fees and relocation expenses while about P4.7 million went to broker’s commission.

Distribution

Earlier, Veloso ordered BDO to “immediately release” about P37 million to Amparo as her share and that of their four children (P7.4 million). The court had permitted the partial distribution of a portion of the P98.9 million the Capitol paid for nearly 25 hectares of the Balili property in Naga, Cebu.

Although she allowed the partition of the property proceeds to the Balili heirs, Veloso instructed the heirs that P37.81 million should remain in the bank, pending the resolution of the civil suit the Province filed to seek refund of the amount it paid for a portion of the Balili property that is underwater.

Also in their pleading submitted yesterday, Amparo’s lawyers asked the court to deny the Capitol’s motion to freeze all the assets of Luis Balili for being “without legal basis” and “premature,” since the court must first rule on the Province’s claim for a refund.

The lawyers asked the court declare the case terminated since they said the Balili Estate proceedings have been pending in court for about 14 years.

Meanwhile, Judge Veloso ordered both parties to “refrain” from issuing statements to the media regarding the case. (GMD)

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/local-news/court-gives-balili-widow-five-days-put-back-p14m

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