A Philippine court ordered the government on October 8 to end a 17-year freeze on a block of San Miguel Corp shares which Chairman Eduardo Cojuangco claims as his own, according to Reuters. But the anti-graft court did not resolve legal questions over the ownership of the shares, which are equivalent to a 20-% stake in Southeast Asia's largest food and beverage group.
Japan's Kirin Brewery Co Ltd owns 15 % of San Miguel, which operates breweries in several Asian countries and dominates the Philippine market for beer, soft drinks, poultry and processed food. The ruling allows Cojuangco to sell the contested stake.
But the proceeds, as well as cash dividends from the shares, must be placed in escrow with a government bank and can be disposed of only with court permission until a final decision is reached on who owns the 20-% stake. Cojuangco's shares -- held via several companies -- were confiscated by the government in 1986 after he fled the country with his political patron, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.
The shares were seized on suspicion they were either illegally acquired or were part of Marcos's ill-gotten wealth. Cojuangco claims he used his own money and personal loans to purchase the shares.
The government also sequestered a separate 27 % stake in San Miguel which was bought using funds from an illegal levy imposed on coconut farmers under the Marcos regime. That stake is now represented by government nominees on the San Miguel board. Cojuangco, who lost to President Fidel Ramos in elections in 1992, is weighing whether to run for president next May.
In 1998, the anti-graft court granted Cojuangco's request to exercise voting rights on the 20-% block of shares, even though they remained confiscated, allowing him to return as San Miguel's chairman and chief executive after a 12-years absence. The ruling on October 8 confirmed Cojuangco's hold on three seats and voting rights on the 15-member San Miguel board, his lawyer Estelito Mendoza told reporters. The court said it was lifting nine writs freezing the shares, mainly due to a legal technicality.
10 October, 2003
