Sale of P29M worth of Al-Amanah lots OKd

The government has approved the sale of 12 lots in Mindanao, worth P29 million, which were previously owned by Al-Amanah Islamic Investment Bank of the Philippines.

Chief Privatization Officer Toni Angeli V. Coo told the Inquirer that the Privatization and Management Office (PMO) was planning to sell more Al-Amanah lots in Davao and General Santos City in the second half of the year.

On Monday, the interagency Privatization Council gave the PMO the go-ahead to dispose of the one dozen lots in the cities of Davao, Digos and Tagum.

In March, the PMO held the auction for 79 lots worth P128 million, the government’s first privatization venture this year.

Coo said the PMO was conducting pre-disposition activities for the additional lots to be sold.

“These are still part of the about 800 lots/real and other acquired properties transferred by Al-Amanah Bank to the government as payment of its advances,” Coo explained.

In February, the Privatization Council also green-lighted the disposition of about P658 million worth of so-called “Hawaii Jewelry” that belonged to former first lady Imelda Marcos.

The latest Bureau of the Treasury data showed that during the first quarter, privatization proceeds reached P40 million, of which the PMO remitted the larger chunk of P37 million, while the rest was contributed by the Presidential Commission on Good Government or PCGG.

The outgoing Aquino administration had targeted to generate P2 billion in privatization proceeds yearly. Ben de Vera