GOVERNMENT, through the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG)
asked the Pasay regional trial court hearing the expropriation case against the
builder of the controversial Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal
3 to reconsider its order naming appraisal firm DG Jones to determine the value
of the facility.
Solicitor general Agnes Devenadera asked Pasay RTC Judge
Jesus Mupas to reconsider his May 3 order, saying that the court has no legal
authority to engage the services of an appraiser and the $1.9 million appraisal
fee DG Jones Philippines is asking for is "excessive, exorbitant and unjust."
The OSG also raised in its motion the question of duplication
of the same work if DG Jones proceeds with the appraisal while government has
already engaged the services of Gleeds, Over Arupa nd Gensler to help in the
valuation of NAIA 3.
The court earlier disqualified Gleeds and its partners after
they were found to be serving as consultants of the MIAA and chose DG Jones as
"highly qualified" to conduct the appraisal.
OSG disputed DG Jones’ qualification as appraiser, saying
that it does not have sufficient expertise and valuation experience of aviation
facilities compared to the other firms which submitted their offers to the
court-appointed commission tasked to determine the value of the facility.
The bill submitted by DG Jones lists $1,400,000 as fixed lump
sum fee for valuation of work-in-place, $200,000 as fixed lump sum fee for the
valuation of remaining works to be completed and $300,000 as provisional sum to
cover the joint survey of the facility and inventory of equipment and softwares.
The controversial NAIA 3 terminal project, built by the
Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc.(Piatco), has been mired in
controversy since its start during the term of former President Joseph Estrada.
The Supreme Court ruled the contract "null and void" for being disadvantageous
to the government in 2005, resulting in Piatco’s suit against the government in
Washington DC and in Singapore, claiming damages of US$650 million.
The Singapore arbitration body has already ruled in favor of
Piatco last year but it was unclear if the decision was enforceable.
Government now wants to expropriate the facility to replace the congested
NAIA Terminal 1. – Ashzel Hachero
