Stradcom faction protests DOJ report on failed takeover

CEBU, Philippines -  One of the warring groups in Stradcom Corp., the Land Transportation Office’s sole information technology provider, yesterday protested the findings of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the failed takeover of Stradcom’s facility at the LTO compound in December last year.

The faction led by businessman Bonifacio Sumbilla accused the DOJ fact-finding panel, chaired by Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III, of being biased in favor of the group led by businessman Cezar Quiambao by giving weight to the latter’s complaint against LTO chief Virginia Torres.

In a statement, Sumbilla said the DOJ panel completely disregarded their legal rights over Stradcom in recommending the initiation of administrative charges against Torres and her preventive suspension.

“The committee under Baraan refused to address the prejudicial question of who has legal, controlling stocks in Stradcom, yet proceeds to make presumptive findings based on erroneous and baseless claims of ownership by Quiambao,” he said.

Sumbilla, who claims to be the legitimate president and chief executive officer of the IT firm, said the panel completely ignored their submission during the probe that the failed takeover was a mere “exercise of duly vested corporate authority over the company’s assets and facilities at the compound, based on mandates of the controlling stockholders of Stradcom International Holdings, Inc. (SIHI) which owns majority of Stradcom and United Information Technologies, which has majority control of SIHI.”

He questioned why the DOJ did not consider the intra-corporate dispute in resolving whether Torres was wrong in favoring their group in the takeover. He stressed that a determination on the rightful board of directors of Stradcom would lead the panel to a conclusion that it was the refusal of Quiambao’s group to surrender the operations that led to the takeover on Dec. 9, 2010.

Their group submitted that the final and executory order of the Supreme Court in 2007 that establishes, constitutes and affirms their legal right to Stradcom as the majority shareholder.

In his report, Baraan said Torres should be held accountable for her inaction on the issue. The panel found that there was a failed takeover of the Stradcom facility on Dec. 2, 2010. The DOJ believes Torres should have acted to prevent another takeover attempt, which occurred on Dec. 9, 2010.