Jancom deal now in GMA’s hands

The ball is in President Arroyo’s hands.

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) has forwarded to the Mrs. Arroyo pertinent documents that would help her reconsider her earlier decision not to implement the controversial P390-billion garbage disposal deal with Jancom Environment Corp.

Jancom lawyer Manuel Molina said the OSG informed him that they have sent the documents to the President so she could determine the official government stand on the implementation of the contract.

"We welcome this development. It’s now up to President Arroyo whether to implement the contract," Molina said, expressing anew the firm’s willingness to renegotiate certain provisions of the contract.

The OSG submitted the documents to the President to comply with the order of Pasig City Regional Trial Court Branch 68 Judge Santiago Estrella to determine the government position on the implementation of the contract.

Estrella had given the OSG and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) up to yesterday to forge the position but OSG lawyers Thomas Laragan and Luciano Emmanuel Joson Jr. failed to show up in yesterday’s hearing.

Instead, the OSG asked the court to postpone the hearing. Molina and MMDA lawyer Vincent Taguc did not object to the appeal. Estrella again reset the hearing to Nov. 8.

Jancom had earlier filed an omnibus motion seeking to compel MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando to implement the controversial build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract with Jancom that was upheld by the Supreme Court in April.

Although the SC had ruled on April 15 that the BOT contract was already "valid and perfected," Jancom asked the RTC to compel the MMDA to implement the contract because, Molina said, Jancom was disturbed by the attitude of Fernando.

Molina said Fernando "defied the Supreme Court ruling" by announcing that the implementation of the Jancom contract was not in the MMDA’s current garbage disposal plans.

But Jancom had already reached an agreement with former MMDA chairman Benjamin Abalos and began constructing two temporary transfer stations and the interim dumpsite in Rodriguez, Rizal.

Jancom officials also said they and their principal foreign partner Vivendi Environmental will be investing over $150 million for the sanitary landfill facility, the transfer or recycling facilities, the transport fleet and the post-operation and maintenance of the landfill site.

Jancom and Abalos forged the amended agreement after the SC ruling, which also provided that although the contract was valid, its implementation depended on Mrs. Arroyo.