Ex-Palawan executive nixes landgrabbing charges

MANILA, Philippines - Former Palawan vice governor David Ponce de Leon has denied land-grabbing charges at the Department of Justice (DOJ) after he allegedly refused to return proceeds of the sale of an island in the province worth P14 million to its owners.

In a statement, De Leon said that he was never part of the negotiations for the sale of the RAT Island, adding that it was only when the sellers and the buyers have agreed on the sale that they sought his help to facilitate payment, buyers being from Manila and the sellers from Busuanga in Northern Palawan.

A woman named Selwin Albag claimed that the former vice governor handled the negotiations for the sale of the island in March 2006. The complainant, who wrote to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, alleged that the buyer entrusted De Leon with the said amount for payment to the owners and that the ex-vice governor did not turn over the amount to them.

The former Palawan official denied this allegation. “In 1997, I was the lawyer of the island owners for the court re-issuance of their lost certificates of title free of charge. The buyers of the island willingly certified in writing that I was not part of the negotiations but that they sought my help to handle the payments,” De Leon recalled.

Later, the buyers sent by bank transfer to Puerto Princesa City the first P7 million in March 2006 and the second amount of P7 million in April or May, 2006 in my account and that thereafter I asked the more than 20 owners-sellers to come to the city of their payment, he said.

He added that the payments were made between March-May 2006 with the sellers signing the corresponding receipts while some payments were even made after May that year.

“The certification by the buyers also states that they know all the owners-sellers were completely paid because up to now, no one among more than 20 owners-sellers have complained to them of non-payment,” he explained. De Leon clarified that if no payment was made to the owners-sellers, by this time, the buyers who are now the titled owners would have been facing civil cases for nullification of the sale and for the cancellation of their title.