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THE Department of Finance (DOF) said it has pre-qualified six out of
22 interested bidders for the right to develop the Philippines’
property in Fujimu Cho, Chiyoda Ku in Tokyo, Japan.
Henry Angeles, a lawyer with the DOF, said the
deadline for submission of the pre-qualification requirements will
be on March 25 this year.
Finance Undersecretary Gaudencio A. Mendoza
Jr. earlier said the country’s remaining 4,360-square meter Fujimi
property will be auctioned off this year.
Finance Secretary Margarito B. Teves said the
government is inviting interested bidders to purchase the terms of
reference for the right to develop the country’s property in Tokyo
under a 50-year lease.
Teves added that the privatization of the
prime property would help the government raise revenues to finance
vital projects.
“We would like to stress that [the right to
develop] the property has not been awarded to any party and that any
representation to the contrary is false,” he said.
In November 2003, the government auctioned off
its assets in Kobe, Japan together with the 2,489-square meter
property in the Nampeidai district in Tokyo.
The government has been accelerating the sale of
its assets to cover for the shortfalls of its tax agencies,
particularly the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), which is
struggling to meet its collection target.
The Finance Department expects to raise P30
billion from the government’s privatization program this year,
lower than last year’s P90.6 billion.
-- Chino S. Leyco
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