JUSTICE Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre III said on Tuesday, May 9, that only President Rodrigo Duterte can declare the joint venture agreement (JVA) between the Bureau of Corrections (Bucor) and Tagum Agricultural Development Company Inc. (Tadeco) as illegal.
He said that declaring such agreement as unconstitutional is beyond his power as a Justice secretary. He also admitted that House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez had asked the DOJ for the declaration.
“I believe it is the President who could declare this as illegal and cancel the contract immediately. However, if the President would not tackle this, then we are going to make a recommendation to Bucor that they should institute appropriate action for the declaration of nullity of this particular contract," he said in a press statement.
Last May 4, Aguirre approved DOJ’s summary preliminary fact-finding investigation report indicating the 25-year Bucor and Tadeco JVA which converted the vast 5,308-hectare Davao Penal Colony (Dapecol) located in Panabo, Davao Del Norte into a banana plantation, failed to comply with legal requirements – making the deal “null and void.”
“Under the BuCor-Tadeco JVA, the production and profit share of the Bucor in 2016 amounted to only P44,854,726, or a rate of P8,449.83 per hectare per year. Compared to the prevailing lease rates of P10,000 to P18,000 per hectare per year of Tanglaw and Cooperative leaseback rates located in the general area where the DPFF lands are located, the Bucor-Tadeco JVA appears to be disadvantageous in terms of per hectare rate,” part of the report reads.
Tadeco is a subsidiary of Davao-based company and Floirendo-owned Anflo Management and Investment Corporation.
The probe, led by Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras III, was ordered by the DOJ upon the request of Alvarez last March 30.
Tadeco president and CEO Alex Valoria, however, declared the basis of these findings as unconstitutional.
On Tuesday, Valoria explained before lawmakers the constitutionality and legality of the Bucor-Tadeco JVA during the joint hearing of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability and the Committee on Justice on the issue.
The Tadeco president clarified that the contract is a JVA, and not a lease and tenancy agreement, which is the main basis for the “erroneous” arguments against the deal.
“We respectfully would like to point out to our honorable lawmakers that the JVA is not only about money; the more important aspect to it is its core purpose of the rehabilitation of the inmates which has been a proven success. The benefits to thousands of ex-inmates, their spouses and children, and finally to the communities they eventually settled into are immeasurable,” Valoria said, adding that it also creates some 30,000 jobs in direct, indirect and ancillary roles.
"No one would argue that the land where the Dapecol stands, which is under the Bucor, is a government reservation. Thus, it is inalienable land and cannot be the subject of a lease agreement as stated under RA (Republic Act) 1199," Valoria added.
