Villar got billions from illegal stock deal in ‘07—Erap camp

(UPDATED 8 p.m.) Senator Manuel Villar Jr. allegedly pressured corporate regulators into allowing him to sell stocks of his listed holding company — in violation of stock market rules — in 2007 so he could fund his presidential campaign. The camp of former President Joseph Estrada bared this allegation in a press briefing on Thursday, accusing the Nacionalista Party presidential bet of making P5 billion from the allegedly irregular transaction, a charge that Villar’s camp quickly dismissed. Estrada, who was booted out of office by a popular street uprising before his impeachment trial could finish in 2001, was himself tagged as having profited from selling BW Resources shares in 1999, in what was dubbed then as the Philippines’ biggest share price manipulation scandal. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile claimed Villar met with the Philippine Stock Exchange board three years ago to pressure its members into bending the so-called lock-up rule so he could sell his stake in Vista Land and Lifescapes, Inc. after it got listed on the bourse. Under the rules, a shareholder who owns at least a tenth of a company being listed on the exchange cannot sell his shares until after six months. One of Villar’s real estate companies that had a stake in Vista land was supposedly exempted from the 180-day lock-up period. This, Enrile alleged, had allowed Villar, who was Senate president at that time, to make almost P5 billion from the stock sale. "There is no doubt in my mind that Senator Manuel Villar himself lobbied and exerted pressure to railroad the approval of his family-owned company’s request for exemption to enable him and his family to sell their shares, which were otherwise subject to a lock-up at a hefty premium," Enrile said. The reelectionist senator added that Villar might have "blackmailed" the PSE board members into allowing him to sell the stocks. "Did Senator Manny Villar, as has been the talk in business circles, really threaten the PSE with a Senate investigation of the shenanigans of its own members?... If such is a fact, I call on the PSE board to say so," he said. Enrile said Villar’s use of his position for personal gain betrays the presidential bet’s "real character." "Sinira ni Manny Villar at ng mga kasabwat niya sa PSE Board ang integridad ng Philippine Stock Exchange. Ito ba ang uri ng tao na dapat iluklok ng sambayanan bilang susunod na Pangulo ng Pilipinas? (Manny Villar and his cohorts on the PSE board destroyed the integrity of the Philippine Stock Exchange. Is this the kind of person who should become the next Philippine President?)" But the Philippine Stock Exchange said Vista Land had complied with its listing rules. "The PSE board had earlier approved the public offering of Vista Land and in a subsequent meeting in 2007 clarified that the lock-up rule would not apply to the sale by existing shareholders owning less than 10 percent of the outstanding capital stock of the company at the time of the offering," PSE Chairman Hans B. Sicat said in a statement. Earlier reports put Villar’s stake in the holding firm through Polar Property at 8.5 percent — less than the 10-percent floor — or 722.61 million shares. “The PSE is committed to the development of the capital markets of our country and implements its rules to protect the interest of its stakeholders and the investing public," the exchange said. ‘Black propaganda’ Nacionalista Party senatorial bet Adel Tamano dismissed the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino’s accusations as black propaganda. “We are committed to running a positive campaign. Let’s forget the personal attacks and mudslinging and focus on our platforms and qualifications so the voters can choose wisely," Tamano said in a text message to GMANews.TV. Tamano used to be the spokesman of the Estrada-led Genuine Opposition, before the senatorial candidate moved to Villar’s party in 2009. He added that Villar’s legal team had already addressed the issue before. Estrada, however, said in a separate interview the "exposé" was not meant to derail Villar’s candidacy. "I don’t want to mudsling (sic) any of the presidential candidates. I want a high-level campaign, but I was forced to reveal this because these are well-documented and the public has the right to know," he said. The former President, convicted of plunder in 2007 before he was pardoned by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, said he found out about Villar’s meeting with the PSE board four months ago, but had to make sure the allegations were true. "We had to gather documents. I might be accused of mudslinging, unless we have the documents to prove this," he added. Despite his camp’s accusations, Estrada said he would not start another disqualification case against his "friend" Villar. "I will not initiate that. Maybe other people might do that. In fairness to my friend, Senator Villar, I won’t initiate that," he said. — with Sophia M. Dedace and Amita Legaspi/NPA, GMANews.TV