Graft raps filed vs Batangas mayor over land sale

MANILA, Philippines - The mayor of Lipa City in Batangas has been charged with graft over an alleged anomalous sale of land in Metro Manila.  

At least 11 residents of Muntinlupa City accused Meynard Sabili of deceiving them into signing two agreements to give up their property. 

Oscar Camerino, Efren Camerino, Dionisia Enriquez, Gerardo Enriquez, Conrado Enriquez, Bernardo Enriquez, Ramon Enriquez, Virgilio Enriquez, Mildred del Rosario, Nick del Rosario and Nelbert del Rosario, all of Victoria Homes in Barangay Tunasan, filed the complaint with the Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday. 

The complainants asked the ombudsman to issue a preventive suspension order against Sabili while the case for estafa, grave misconduct, dishonesty and oppression and grave abuse of authority against him are being heard. 

They said Sabili used deception to appropriate for himself rights to three parcels of land.

The complainants said the property is the subject of a case pending before the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court since 1983. They said they decided to sell portions of the land to help them shoulder the cost of litigation. 

“Meynard Sabili introduced himself as a lawyer and licensed broker and convinced us that he can sell our land and help us in the cases we are involved in. He encouraged us to allow him to handle the transaction for the sale of the land,” they said. 

They said Sabili made them sign two memoranda of agreement dated March 1, 2010 and Sept. 9, 2010 for him to broker the sale. The mayor used the agreements to claim 50,000 square meters of the property. 

“He made us wait for nothing and he did not extend any help, but he demanded 50,000 square meters of the land as his share, threatening that he will forcibly get the land if we do not give it to him,” the complaint stated. 

The complainants said they learned only last year that Sabili was neither a lawyer nor a licensed broker through certifications they got from the Office of the Bar Confidant of the Supreme Court and the Professional Regulation Commission.