CEBU, Philippines — Two towers have been added to the Province of Cebu’s list of assets yesterday morning.
Governor Gwendolyn Garcia has signed a Deed of Conveyance with Tristan Las Marias, Cyberzone Properties Inc. representative, to transfer the ownership of two Cyberzone Towers constructed by Filinvest on a prime government lot at the Cebu IT Park.
On May 26, 2012, the province entered into a Build, Transfer, and Operate (BTO) agreement with Filinvest. Under the agreement, the province would allow Filinvest to build its four business process outsourcing (BPO) towers on a lot the province owns. Once the construction is completed, ownership of the building would be transferred to the Province of Cebu.
With the DOC signed, the province now holds ownership of Cyberzone Tower 1 and 2. Two other towers are still being constructed by Filinvest.
Cebu will receive two percent of the gross revenue of the buildings while also earning from Filinvest’s lease on the new government property.
“Ang development and construction cost pa lang already stands at about P3.5B… that’s very conservative… That is why we are asking for an audited financial statement para kahibaw ta pila tanan gyud (The development and construction cost stands at about P3.5B, which is a very conservative amount),” Garcia said.
She said the province will renegotiate with Filinvest due to the change in the current market landscape.
Garcia said she is looking into the reappraisal of all of the province’s assets since the last reappraisal was conducted during her last administration.
“Unsa’y net effect ana? Mas taas na unya ang revenue sa province, mas taas ang revenues sa municipalities, mas taas pud ang ma-share nga revenues sa barangay (What is the net effect? The revenue of the province and the municipalities might be higher and the barangays will get a bigger share of the revenues),” Garcia said.
Aside from this, the province will also revise its real property value, which is to be done every three years, as mandated by the Local Government Code. She said the last time a revision was done was also during her previous term as governor. JMO (FREEMAN)