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By Jonathan M.
Hicap, Reporter
The Philippine
government has filed a motion with a Pasay regional trial court,
questioning the appointment of an independent appraiser for the
assessment of the real value of the mothballed Ninoy Aquino
International Airport Terminal 3.
The motion
questions the decision of Judge Jesus Mupas of Branch 117 of the
Pasay Regional Trial Court in selecting DG Jones as appraiser that
will help the NAIA 3 Commission in determining how much should be
paid to the Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc. (Piatco).
This will yet
again delay the expropriation case that has been pending with the
Pasay court since 2004.
General Manager
Alfonso Cusi of the Manila International Airport Authority said he
was not the one who filed the motion but perhaps the Office of the
Solicitor General.
He said he is not
opposing DG Jones since it is a court-appointed firm but he only
wants to clarify the scope of work and the amount to be paid to the
firm for the NAIA 3 project.
Cusi wants to
know what the government expects from the $1.9-million assessment
fee that it will pay to the Makati-based firm.
Last week DG
Jones and the NAIA 3 Commission agreed to lower by at least 20
percent the assessment fee and submitted a proposal to Mupas for his
approval.
The MIAA is also
fighting a similar battle with Takenaka Corp. of Japan, the original
contractor of the NAIA 3 project.
The authority may
file charges against Takenaka for failing to repair and rectify the
different structural defects that were found by MIAA consultants.
Cusi has informed
Takenaka last week that it will find another contractor to finish
the terminal facility after Takenaka refused to cooperate with MIAA.
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