CJH DEVELOPMENT Corp. (CJHDevCo) urged the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) to respect the rights of condominium unit owners and golf shareholders.
“There are about 400 (condo owners), and zero have signed up with BCDA. Why is it zero? Because BCDA is not offering them anything. They just want to take over the condominiums and hotels,” according to Robert John L. Sobrepeña, who chairs CJHDevCo, which formerly managed the Camp John Hay complex.
Speaking at the Money Talks with Cathy Yang program on One News Channel, Mr. Sobrepeña said there are three categories of ownership in Camp John Hay: estate lot owners, condo owners, and golf share buyers.
CJHDevCo said that there were about 400 condotel owners, 160 estate lot owners, and 1,900 golf club members affected by the BCDA takeover of Camp John Hay.
“In terms of investors, we have 1,900 golf shareholders, none of whom were given their rights to play in the golf course with their Securities and Exchange Commission-approved shares,” Mr. Sobrepeña said.
“None of the 400 condominium owners has been renewed or offered any kind of deal, and out of the 160 homeowners, I believe they have offered to 80-90 homeowners,” he added.
On March 10, BCDA President and Chief Executive Officer Joshua M. Bingcang said the government-owned corporation has signed fresh contracts with 95% of the estate lot owners.
For the hotel unit owners, he said that the BCDA is still studying what arrangements to make.
“I think the position of BCDA is they are not offering anything to the condominium and hotel owners; they are not offering any playing privileges to those who invested in golf shares many, many years ago,” Mr. Sobrepeña said.
He said that the golf shareholders and hotel unit owners have written to President Ferdinand J. Marcos, Jr.
“He has been silent; he has not replied,” he said. “So for CJHDevCo is about to write the President another letter, and hope for better luck than the homeowners and golf members.”
He said that the company’s letter to the President will ask for the government to respect the rights of the third parties in light of the Camp John Hay takeover.
“All these third parties have invested and trusted the public-private partnership of the government in Camp John Hay. They came in when the government enticed them to come in,” he said.
“Now that they are in, their homes are being taken away without due process, and that is something that is really unacceptable to a lot of homeowners and investors,” he added.
The BCDA took over the Camp John Hay property after the Office of the Baguio City Sheriff served CJHDevCo a notice to vacate following a Supreme Court ruling. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
