Cebu Capitol consultant Rori John Sepulveda shows the lot plans of the property bought by the province in Naga town, large parts of which were found to be mangroves and seawater. (Photo by MARS MOSQUEDA JR.)

Cebu – Governor Gwendolyn Garcia has publicly apologized to the Cebuanos after a Capitol survey  showed that 9.4 hectares of the 25-hectare lot that the provincial government bought in 2008 were submerged in seawater and could not be titled.

“I say I am sorry,” Garcia said a month after the controversy regarding the lot purchase in Naga City was exposed and questioned by her political opponents.

“We have called this press conference in order to speak as one, and in so doing tell all the facts about the Balili property, which was bought by the Cebu Provincial Government. It is important that all facts are presented in the midst of all these innuendos, suspicions, speculations and not to mention a lot of posturing,” she said.

Garcia presented the result of the geodetic survey conducted by the province. She said she asked the provincial board to grant her the authority to take legal action in order to recover the amount paid for the property.

Capitol is seeking to recover P37.8 million it paid for mangrove and seawater covering 14,402 square meters and 80,124 square meters, respectively. Garcia said her administration would take steps to recover the amount paid last year to the heirs of the Balili estate.

“We may have been disadvantaged but I promise you that I don’t take my promises lightly. We will seek full redress and I will not stop until any wrongdoing shall be corrected,” she said.

The Office of Ombudsman in the Visayas Friday said the result of a business transaction entered into by a local government is the full responsibility of the local government, whether it will result to profit or loss.

But Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Pelagio Apostol said his office will conduct an inquiry into the purchase of the lot to see if there was “abuse of power” that was a disadvantage to the provincial government.

The deed of absolute sale signed in June 2008 states that 11 lots, later reduced to 10 lots, were sold by Romeo Balili and widow Amparo Balili to the province represented by the governor.

“Now, you ask who made the decision. That’s my call and I take responsibility for that. I will take full responsibility for deciding to purchase the property,” she said.

The Balili property includes fish ponds, cottages and a swimming pool. The lot was appraised at P610 per square meter but the province bought it at P400 per square meter.

Garcia denied allegations that somebody earned from the transaction after it was reported that Amparo Balili only received P65 million as payment for the lot.

The governor showed to reporters the original copy of the two checks received by Romeo Balili, the court-appointed administrator of the property.

The first check dated April 28, 2008 amounted to P49,849,200 while the second check dated October 2, 2008 bore the amount of P49,077,600.