Eddie Gil evicted from ‘presidential HQ’

The election’s over. Can we have our offices back now?

A would-be presidential candidate who promised each Filipino P1 million in return for their vote has been asked to vacate his old campaign headquarters for non-payment of rent, among other reasons.

A Quezon City metropolitan trial court judge ordered yesterday the eviction of Eddie Gil from his former campaign headquarters along Quezon Avenue and EDSA after he lost a battle with the JWS Development Corp., which claims ownership of the property.

Gerry Ocampo, sheriff of the court, said the final eviction order was signed by Judge Ma. Elisa Sempio Diy and was served at 9 a.m. yesterday on the occupants of the "Isang Bansa, Isang Diwa" headquarters.

"We have padlocked the building. It’s now up to the owner to secure the area," Ocampo said.

But Gil, aided by some 50 followers, resisted the takeover and vowed to prevent anybody from entering the three-story building which served as his headquarters during a failed bid to join the 2004 presidential race.

Gil’s spokeswoman, Elizabeth Samson, who claimed to be the real owner of the property, said the case is still pending before the Supreme Court and therefore is not subject to any eviction order.

She showed The STAR a photocopy of documents, claiming they proved the case is still pending before the Supreme Court.

"Their title is fake, we possess the real one" she said. Samson also claimed they had been occupying the property since 1988.

Jun Pablicarte, representative of the JWS, disputed Samson’s claim, however, saying the real owner of the property is the company and that they already won the case in the Supreme Court.

He said the company has already obtained a fencing permit to secure the building and will start blocking it off from trespassers anytime.

Ocampo, for his part, said the final notice of eviction and demand for payment of rental was issued after the Regional Trial Court dismissed the petition of Gil seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the enforcement of the notice.

As of presstime yesterday, Gil and his followers were camping out near the padlocked headquarters.