Bacolod court denies SM plea

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines—The Bacolod Regional Trial Court has denied the petition of SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SMPHI) to declare it the winning bidder of the 7.7-hectare prime property of the Negros Occidental provincial government in Bacolod City, Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr., said Monday.

The decision paves the way for Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), which was awarded the right to rent and lease the property in 2011, to begin its multibillion-peso development of the property adjacent to the provincial capitol in Bacolod City, the governor said.

Negros Occidental Branch 50 RTC Judge Estefanio Libutan Jr., in a decision dated Jan. 23, denied the petition of SMPHI against Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. and members of the Negros Occidental Committee on Awards and Disposal of Real Properties of Negros Occidental for lack of merit.

SMPHI, in its petition, asked the court to nullify and set aside a resolution of the Committee on Awards and Disposal of Real Properties declaring the July 7, 2011, bidding of the 7.7-hectare property null and void, and to instead declare it the winning bidder.

SMPHI had insisted that it be declared the winner as it offered a higher bid than ALI.

It said that while its bid of P18,888 per square meter was below the floor price of P19,500 fixed by the Committee, the difference of P612 was not excessive because it represented only 3 percent of the floor price.

However, the court found no evidence to prove that the respondents gravely abused their discretion when they declared the July 7, 2011, bidding a failure.

Judge Libutan added that by proceeding to a negotiated sale, the province became richer by P1,000 per square meter since ALI offered to buy the property at P20,500 per square meter, equivalent to another P36.58 million for the province.