Business interests: Grace Poe, Mar Roxas, Miriam Defensor Santiago

GMA News Research looked into the business interests of the presidential candidates and their immediate family based on the candidates’ own declarations in their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN) and the businesses they registered at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

For this second and last part of the special report, the team examined the business interest of Senators Grace Poe and Miriam Defensor Santiago and former Interior and Local Government secretary Mar Roxas.

In the first part, the team showed the business interest of Vice President Jejomar Binay and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.

Poe was sworn in as chairman of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) in October 2010 and held the position until October 2012. Poe ran for senator in 2013.

As MTRCB chair, Poe filed her first Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth in 2010, where she declared her business interests including shares of stock at FPJ Productions Inc. As claimed in her curriculum vitae, Poe said she was Chief Operating Officer and Treasurer of FPJ Productions and Film Archive, Inc. from 2005 to 2010.

Based on its records at the SEC, the primary purpose of FPJ Productions is “to produce, manufacture, sell, distribute, lease or otherwise trade in motion pictures of every kind and description."

The mandate of MTRCB deals with films, among others. The agency is tasked to “regulate and classify motion pictures, television programs, and publicity materials.”

University of the Philippines National College of Public Administration and Governance Dean Maria Fe Mendoza said that divesting was the right thing to do.

“Kasi kapag uupo ka sa isang publikong posisyon, dapat isantabi mo na yung pagiging private - either businessman o meron kang share,” Mendoza said. “Kasi itong mga kumpanyang ito, maliit man o malaki, ay may dealings with government.”

The SALN and the SEC records of the company did not indicate any divestment.

GMA News Research found that FPJ Productions was actively doing business in 2011, a year when Poe was still sitting as MTRCB chair.

In the company’s 2012 financial statement, it declared no income for 2012, but indicated a contract with a major television network in 2011. The contract granted exclusive TV viewing rights to the network.

In the 2012 records of FPJ Productions –- Poe's last year with the MTRCB –- she and her mother, Jesusa Sonora or more popularly known as Susan Roces, owned 99 percent of the company.

At that time, Poe held 23.8 percent ownership, while her mother owned 75.2 percent. Roces was president and chairman of the board.

The ownership remained unchanged up to the company’s 2013 papers, the latest disclosure filed at the SEC.

Poe’s other businesses

The SEC documents show that Poe is the vice president and treasurer of two real estate businesses, 226 Wilson Development Corp and JSP Realty and Development Corp. She has 15.94 percent and 9.48 percent ownership of the companies respectively.

The two companies are family-owned. Roces is the president of both companies, as well as the major stockholder, and owns 74.89 percent of 226 Wilson, and 81.04 percent of JSP Realty.

Poe and her husband Teodoro Misael ‘Neil’ Llamanzares have business interests in at least six more companies, two of which are publicly-listed with the Philippine Stock Exchange.

Poe is a board member and stockholder of AB Design Studio and Trading Corp, an interior design company, and The Health Cube Rehabilitation and Wellness Center, a physical occupational therapy establishment.

Llamanzares is the corporate secretary and a stockholder of Chambrant L. Holdings Corp. based on the company’s 2013 papers with the SEC. The primary purpose of the company is to engage in the real estate business.

According to the 2014 and latest SALN of the senator, Neil has shares of stocks in two publicly-listed companies: San Miguel Corporation and Filinvest Land Inc.

Llamanzares has 15,500 shares in Filinvest amounting to P19,220, and 8,500 shares in San Miguel Corp which translates to P952,000.

Aside from FPJ Productions, Inc, 226 Wilson Development Corp and JSP Realty and Development Corp, Roces is also a board member and stockholder of IIP Inc., a company engaged in photography.

Roces and FPJ Productions Inc are Poe’s largest campaign contributors in the senator’s 2013 elections campaign kitty. Poe’s mother shelled out a total of P17.39 million, while FPJ Productions donated a total of P18.25 million in cash and in kind.

We sent a letter of inquiry twice to the office of the senator, but has yet to receive a reply.

Roxas business interests

Roxas has business interests in at least 14 companies, six of which are listed in the PSE, as declared in his 2014 SALN.

Roxas owns 100 percent of Harmony Asset Holding Corporation, a holding company according to its 2015 records with the SEC. Its financial statement for 2014, however, states that the company has not yet started its commercial operations.

Harmony Assets’ has two subsidiaries: Bedford Corporation and Mt. Kisco Holding Corp B. Roxas’ name appears in the papers of Mt Kisco as one of its shareholders with 100 shares.

Mt. Kisco is another holding company. Like Harmony Assets, it has not yet started its commercial operation based on its, 2014 financial statement.

Roxas was president of Northstar Capital and held 60 percent of the company and an American entity, Allen & Company, held the rest of 40 percent. These information is based on the company’s 1999 records at the SEC, the latest available.

According to Roxas’ official website, he worked as investment banker, and was assistant vice president of New York-based Allen and Co. Inc. before joining Philippine politics in 1993.

The six PSE-listed companies that Roxas declared in his 2014 SALN are operating as holding companies (Prime Media/Private Development Corporation of the Philippines), holding/petroleum (Seafront Petroleum and Mineral Resources Class A/B, food (Jollibee Food Corporation), or mining (Lepanto Consolidated Mining, Manila Mining Corporation, and Philex Mining.)

Aside from these, Roxas and his mother, Judy Araneta Roxas are together in at least three companies.

Myapo Prawn Farm Corp, a company engaged in fishing and fishpond operations, listed Roxas as one of its stockholders. His mother Judy is the president of the company based on 2016 SEC records.

The mother and son are also stockholders of Sandpines Holding Corporation, based on the 2015 records of the holding company. Roxas is a board member while Judy is president.

Roxas owns 29.99 percent of Kauswagan Development Corporation based on its 2016 records. Judy owns shares of stock as well and is chairman of the company. Kauswagan is engaged in the “development and/or operation of agricultural, commercial and industrial enterprises.”

Roxas’ wife, broadcaster Korina Sanchez, appeared in at least two SEC-registered companies.

Sanchez is president and stockholder of Pards And Mils Trading Inc. based on its 2014 records. The business is engaged in trading of San Miguel Beer products, as declared in the same document.

Roxas declared Pards and Mils in his 2011, 2013 and 2014 SALNs.

Sanchez’s name also appeared in the 1998 documents of Datamag Systems Inc, an information technology company. She was vice president, as well as one of its stockholders. Datamag did not have any other SEC records after its 1998 disclosure.

GMA News Research also looked into the business interests of family members of Roxas who are top contributors in his 2004 and 2010 election campaign.

Of the five presidential candidates, only Roxas and Poe had relatives declared as top contributors.

Judy, her brother Jorge L. Araneta, and her sister Maria A. Fores, contributed a total P30 million to Roxas’ senatorial campaign in 2004.

The Araneta siblings also donated more than half to the P246 million campaign kitty of Roxas in 2010 when he ran as vice president. Judy, Jorge and Maria cumulatively gave P150 million. They are scions of the prominent Araneta clan who owns large tracts of land in Cubao, Quezon City.

Apart from those already cited above, Judy, Jorge and Maria are connected to at least 26 business interests registered with the SEC, as well as listed in the PSE.

The most recognizable of these businesses is the Araneta Center Inc. According to its 2014 FS, the corporation is also doing business under the names of the following:

• Ali Mall
• Ali Mall Carpark
• Araneta Center Auto Centro
• Araneta Center Bus Terminal
• Araneta Coliseum
• Araneta Coliseum Circle
• Araneta Cyber Center
• Farmers Garden
• Farmers Market
• Fiesta Carnival
• Gateway Call Center
• Gateway Mall
• Gateway Suits
• Gateway Tower
• Gourmet Tower
• Manhattan Centre
• Manhattan Garden City
• Manhattan Mall;
• Metro Centro Mall
• Metro Crossing Mall
• Metro Gateway Mall
• New Frontier Building COmplex
• New Frontier Cinema
• PDC Carpark
• Value Station Arcade
• Araneta Center Food Gallery
• Araneta Center Food Gallery Bar
• Araneta Center Food Plaza
• Araneta Center Food Plaza Bar
• Food Fiesta-Dampa sa Farmers Market
• Food Fiesta Dampa sa Farmers Market Bar;
• Gateway Mall Food Express
• Gateway Mall Food Express Bar
• Trattoria Uno Ristorante Italiano
• Sachi Authentic Japanese Restaurant
• Rasa Restaurant
• Parking Garage South

Based on the Araneta Center Inc’s 2015 disclosures, Jorge is the chairman, president and CEO of the company, Judy is the vice chairman and senior executive vice president, and Maria is one of the directors.

Kauswagan, where Roxas is a stockholder, owns 16.87% of Araneta Center Inc.

Associated Sugar Inc. holds the largest ownership of Araneta Center at 40.34 percent. Its 2014 financial statement states that it is engaged in “leasing and as non-life insurance broker.”

Its 2016 GIS, however, showed that its purpose is to “to buy, sell, and otherwise deal generally, at wholesale or retail, in sugar of all kinds, and in goods, wares, and merchandise of any and all kinds, and in goods, wares, and merchandise of any and all kinds and nature whatsoever, and to conduct and carry on any form of mercantile enterprise necessary or incidental to the merchandising business of the company.”

The same document also shows that Judy, Jorge and Maria are the primary officials and stockholders of Associated Sugar.

Jorge, its chairman and president, owns more than half of the company at 53.31 percent. Judy and Maria each have 23.34 percent ownership.

There are at least 40 business interests connected to Roxas and his wife, and his top contributors who belong to his family: his mother, uncle and aunt. These businesses vary in nature: agricultural and aqua business, operation of two large fast-food chains, hospital, hotels, information technology,  mining, promotion and entertainment, and real estate, among others.

Dean Mendoza acknowleged Roxas’ wide political and business network.

“Kasi alam naman natin na meron siyang relasyon sa dating presidente. Tapos malaki ang conglomerate ng mga Araneta at saka ng mga Roxas,” she said. “Parang hindi mo maiiwasan na may isa o dalawa na merong magre-relate, o magta-transact with the government. Ang problema lang ay kung ang mga interes na isinusuyo ay underground o hindi lehitimo.We just hope that there will be checks and balances.”

GMA News Research sent a letter of inquiry to the campaign team of Roxas – via email and via courier - but has yet to receive a reply to our queries.

Santiago’s companies

GMA News Research looked into the SALN of the senator, as well as the business entities where the names of her husband Narcsico Jr. and son Narciso III appear.

Almost all the declared business interests in the senator’s SALN are in real estate.

The senator and or her family also have a law firm, two training centers and a trading company.

All of their businesses declared a single address - a building in West Triangle, Quezon City.

Santiago has been declaring Narsan Holdings, Inc. in her SALNs since as far back as 2005. Santiago’s latest SALN declared Narsan Holding’s nature as "real estate." The company was incorporated on March 13, 2002.

According to its Articles of Incorporation, the primary purpose of Narsan Holdings, among others is to “"to purchase, subscribe for, or otherwise acquire and own, hold, use, sell, assign, transfer, mortgage, pledge, exchange, or otherwise dispose of real and personal property of every kind and description..."

Other real estate companies declared in her latest SALNs are NS & MD Corporation, NARCMIR Corporation, NMAM Corporation and DefSan Corporation.

The four companies were incorporated on the same day – April 15, 2009. They were first declared in the 2009 SALN of the senator.

The date of registration and the address are not the only common denominator of these four companies: their respective Articles of Incorporation showed that their declared primary purposes are identical word for word.

In her latest SALN, Santiago declared that she’s a partner of the Defensor Santiago Law Firm since October 1990. A search with SEC or Department of Trade and Industry did not yield any result of that name.

The senator, however, is the partner of Miriam Defensor Santiago Associates which was incorporated in the SEC in October of 2002.

The names of the senator and his husband and son also appeared in three more companies.

The spouses are incorporators of the Miriam Academy for Computer Science Corp, an education and training company which focuses on information technology.

They, too, are incorporators of Narsan Business Enterprises Inc which deals with retail and wholesale trading of “any and all kinds of goods.” Also an incorporator is their son, Narciso III.

Narciso III has his own training company. He’s the incorporator of Narsan Security Training Center, whose primay purpose is to "conduct basic, supervisory and specialized training for private security guards, detectives, investigators and other security professionals."

The only documents available at the SEC of these three companies as well as the law firm are their registration papers.

The office of the senator sent word to GMA News Research that the senator refused to comment.

Asked about the potential impact of the numerous business interests on the rule of the winning candidate, Dean Mendoza, the expert on governance said, “Kung ang conflict of interest ay pagninilaynilayan nila at sasabihin nilang ang conflict of interest ay hindi mangyayari sa termino ko, at ipapakita ko na kahit kunwari meron akong relasyon sa big business o kaya meron akong relasyon sa mga kamag-anak kong may maliliit na negosyo, ang bottom line, gagawin ko ang ipinangako ko at dapat ang ipinangako ko ay para talaga sa ikabubuti ng tao at hindi ikabubuti ng bulsa ko, ng kamag-anak ko o mga kaklase ko.”