AGP rehab suffers setback as 2 top executives resign

The rehabilitation of AGP Industrial Corp. has suffered a setback as two of its top officials resigned in disgust over the still unresolved inter-corporate dispute in its parent company Trans-Philippines Investment Corp. (TPIC).

AGPI president M.M. Martin and senior vice president and corporate secretary Hiram Mendoza have tendered their resignation to Rosario Bernaldo, the chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – appointed Management Committee for TPIC. Copies of their letters of resignation were furnished the Philippine Stock Exchange.

Martin said that aside from the lack of quorum in the AGPI board, the company has not been able to properly operate since AGPI staff have been banned from entering their old office address at the Tektite Towers in Ortigas way back in 2000.

The AGPI official noted that at least 15 boxes of corporate files and documents have remained at the said office address, which were provided by Luis Villanueva after AGPI vacated its previous office at the SGV Building in Makati.

AGPI’s woes started in February 1999 when TPIC filed for a debt moratorium and subsequent rehabilitation with the SEC, although this has been hampered by the continued conflict between brothers Luis and Roberto Villanueva, the controlling shareholders in TPIC. TPIC’s 85-percent interest in AGPI amounted to about P391 million at that time.

"What we have, therefore, are just the most recent files, with which we were able to carry on with the preparations of the annual reports and stratutory reports until the end of 2001," Martin said.

The Villanueva rivalry has also caused the suspension of exploratory meetings among representatives of AGPI, its investee company and global contractor AG&P and DMCI Holdings Inc. involving the possible sale and divestment of the company’s stake in AG&P.

Mendoza, on the other hand, said the non-operation of AGPI since almost three years ago, capped by the bid for rehabilitation of TPIC, "impels me to address this letter of resignation to the Commission, thru the SEC-appointed Management Committee of TPIC."

Based on AGPI’s financial statements, it has racked up consistent and significant net losses amounting to over P31 million in 1996; P38.4 million in 1997 and P51.5 million in 1998.

The company is also insolvent as the value of its liabilities exceed its assets by P41.3 million and has a negative book value per share of P2.26 million in 1998.