Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House BiLLNo. 5045

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill proposes the establishment of “Public Assets Management
Corporation,” principally tasked to ensure efficient managements of assets
seized or forfeited in favor of the government

At present, Republic Act No, 1379 or the “An Act Declaring Forfeiture In
Favor Of The State Any Property Found To Have Been Unlawfully Acquired By
Any Public Officer Or Employee And Providing For The Proceedings Therefor,”
provides for the process of forfeiture in cases of unlawfully acquired properties of
public officers or employees, However, there seems to be no main agency that
will handle management of recovered assets by the State. In result, absent
proper management to preserve and administer, the value of assets may
diminish resulting to the disadvantage of the State

With the establishment of the Public Assets Management Corporation, it is
aimed that the interest of the State be well preserved and protected and that the
illegally acquired assets be brought back to the State for maximum use and
utilization:

Passage of the law is therefore earnestly sought.

se


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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Sixteenth Congress
2nd Regular Session

5045

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE MARLYN L. PRIMICIAS-AGABAS,

AN ACT
ESTABLISHING THE PUBLIC ASSETS MANAGEMENT CORPORATION OF THE,
PHILIPPINES, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES,

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the Charter of the Public
Assets Management Corporation of the Philippines,

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. ~ It is hereby declared the policy of the State to
ensure the efficient, economical, systematic, transparent and optimal preservation,
administration, management, liquidation and disposition of all assets seized or forfeited in
favor of the government in the course or as a consequence of criminal, administrative and
civil actions,

SEC. 3. Creation of the Public Assets Management Corporation of the Philippines. ~
There is hereby created an independent central public assets management authority, which
shall be a government-owned body corporate attached to the Department of Finance (DOF)
to be known as the Public Assets Management Corporation of the Philippines (the
Corporation). It shall have the primary responsibility and objective of administering the
country’s asset management regime, ensuring the proper and prudent disposition of all
assets seized or forfeited in favor of the State

SEC. 4, Corporate Governance, - The Corporation shall be governed by a Board of
Directors composed of the following

(a) The Secretary of Finance, as ex-officio Chair,

(b) The Secretary of Budget and Management as ex-officio Vice Chair,

(c) Three (3) members with backgrounds in banking and financial services, insurance.
real estate, property appraisal, engineering and other technical fields, to be
appointed by the President of the Philippines and to serve for a term of five (5) years;
and


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(d) Two (2) members with backgrounds in general business or other similar areas, to be
appointed by the President of the Philippines and to serve for a term of five (6) years.

The operations and management of the Corporation shall be conducted by an Executive
Committee composed of the following

{a) A President;

(b) An Executive Vice President;

(0) A Senior Vice President for Operations;

(d) A Senior Vice President for Finance3;

(e) A General Counsel and Corporate Secretary; and

(f) Three (3) Vice Presidents in charge of Asset Management, Asset Valuation and
Asset Liquidation/Disposition; all of whom shall be appointed by the Chair upon
endorsement by the Board of Directors.

SEC. 5. Corporate Powers. - The Corporation shall have the following corporate
powers:

(a) Accept and take fille to, custody over and possession of such assets and other
properties seized and/or forfeited by law enforcement, judicial and other
governmental entities in favor of the State in the course of criminal, civil,
administrative, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering or similar proceedings, subject
to the following rules:

1, Assets seized by administrative agencies. In cases of administrative forfeiture,
the forfeiting agency has the option of either:

1.1. disposing of forfeited assets in accordance with the authority inherent in their
law enforcement mandates and pursuant to their established systems and
procedures, or

1.2 turing over the same to the Corporation, especially in cases where the
optimal management or disposition of assets require technical expertise and
competence.

2. Assets forfeited in favor of the State. In cases where assets have been forfeited
in favor of the State by virtue of a final and executory order of a court, the
Corporation shall automatically take custody over the same for proper
administration and/or disposition; and

3. Assets seized and subject of ongoing litigation, In cases where assets are seized
in connection with an ongoing criminal or forfeiture litigation, said assets shall be
considered in custodia Jegis and may be placed under the physical custody of the
Corporation the agency which seized the same, or such other person or office as
the court may designate, in which case, the designated custodian is deemed
constituted as an agent of the court


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3.1, Prior to an official designation of a custodian by the court, seized assets are
deemed jpso jure under the accountability and fiduciary responsibility of the
agency which seized the same, or the agency with the duty to take possession
thereof in accordance with existing laws and rules,

3.2, Upon motion by any interested party, including the Corporation, the court
shall conduct a summary hearing, to be concluded within twenty (20) days from
the filing of such motion, to determine whether seized assets should be sold or
disposed of, if doing so would best serve the interests of justice. The court must
render a ruling on the motion no later than ten (10) days from the conclusion of
the summary hearing,

3.3, In the event that the seized assets are liable to progressive wasting,
dissipation, devaluation, depreciation or deterioration, or cannot reasonably be
conserved in a cost-efficient manner, the court shall order a disposition pendente
Jite unless it is established by competent evidence during the summary hearing
that such disposition will cause undue injury or will adversely affect the
substantive rights of the parties or any third party, provided, than an order of the
court to sell or dispose of seized assets pendente lite shall not affect the trial of
the case or be construed as an adjudication of the merits of the parties’ claims
and defenses.

3.4. The proceeds of the sale of seized assets disposed of pendente lite shall be
kept in a separate account and turned over to the custody of the court for
eventual release to the prevailing party or to whoever may be adjudged as
lawfully entitled thereto,

(b) Enter into contracts and/or execute any deed or act in furtherance of its mandate to

efficiently, economically and prudently manage, administer, preserve, apprise,
liquidate and/or dispose of assets under its custody;

(c) Execute and deliver, on behalf of the Government, the deeds of sale, contracts and

other instruments as may be necessary or appropriate to convey title to such assets;

(d) Sell or dispose of seized or forfeited assets, subject to the rules provided in

paragraph (a) of this Section, without need of securing prior clearances from other
governmental entities, provided, that all such transactions shall be subject to
subsequent review under existing audit rules and regulations, and shall be guided by
principles of fairness, prudence, accountability and transparency;

(e) Construct, own, lease, operate and maintain various forms of properties as well as

infrastructure facilities;

(f) Receive donations, grants, bequests and assistance of all kinds from local and

foreign governments and private sectors and utllize the same;

(g) Hire and retain such personnel complement as may be necessary for the execution

of its mandate: engage external services as the exigencies of particular cases may


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require, including, but not limited to, technical consultants, accountants, auditors,
counsels, appraisers, risk managers, curators, conservationists and others;

(h) Adopt, amend, or change its by-laws; to adopt, alter and use a seal; to sue; and to
exercise the general powers of a corporation mentioned in the Corporation Code of
the Philippines, insofar as such powers are not inconsistent or incompatible with the
provisions of this Charter; and

(i) Conduct any such act, consistent with law, for the preservation of any seized or
forfeited asset, consistent with the professional and economic management of the
same.

SEC. 6. Personnel. - The Board of Directors shall provide for an organization and
staff of officers and employees of the Corporation and, upon recommendation of the
President fix their remunerations and other emoluments. All positions in the Corporation,
including consultancies, shall be governed by the compensation, position classification
system and qualification standards approved by the Board of Directors based on a
comprehensive job analysis of actual duties and responsibilities. The compensation plan
shall be comparable to the prevailing compensation plans in the private sector and shall be
subject to periodic review by the Board of Directors once every two (2) years, without
prejudice to yearly merit reviews or increases based on the Corporation's productivity and
profitability. The Corporation shall, therefore, be exempt from existing laws, rules and
regulations on compensation, position classification and qualification standards. The
Corporation shall, however, endeavor to make its system conform as possible to the
principles under the Compensation and Position Classification Act of 1989.

No officer or employee of the Corporation subject to Civil Service Law shall be
dismissed except for cause as provided by law.

SEC. 7. Proceeds of Operations. - Proceeds derived from the management or
disposition of seized or forfeited assets shall be remitted by the Corporation to the National
Treasury or to the proper governmental office or agency as may be required by law,
provided, the Corporation shall be entitled to deduct therefrom the following: (1) actual
expenses incurred in the conservation, administration and disposition of said assets, and (2)
an amount equivalent to ten percent (10%) of the net proceeds as management fees.
Management fees may be adjusted based on relevant industry and market standards and
considerations, provided, that any adjustment must be subject to a detailed study and
approved by the Board of Directors. All earnings retained by the Corporation shall be
properly and prudently administered with a view to preserving its viability.

SEC. 8. Reimbursements for Expenses. - The Corporation shall be entitled to
reimbursement of actual and necessary costs for the maintenance, preservation and
conservation of seized assets in the event that a court of law adjudicates the same against
the State, provided, such costs shall be reimbursed by the prevailing party in an amount to
be equitably fixed by the court, provided further, the Corporation shall render periodic reports
to the proper courts regarding the status of assets under its custody and the costs incurred
for their maintenance, preservation and conservation, the same to be considered by the said



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courts for purposes of fixing the amount of reimbursement due the Corporation at the
conclusion of trial

SEC. 9. Relations with Forfeiting Agencies. - The Corporation may enter into
Memoranda of Agreement with relevant forfeiting agencies to define their respective roles,
functions and financial responsibilities relative to the management, administration, liquidation
and disposition of seized or forfeited assets, and the transfer and payment of the proceeds
of disposition.

SEC. 10. Immunity from Suit. - The Corporation shall not be subject to criminal, civil
or administrative suits in connection with any act done or omitted by it in the regular exercise
of its functions and powers, provided, it acts in good faith and in consonance with the State
policy herein set forth.

SEC. 11. Third Party Claims. - Any and all third party claims arising from any seized
or forfeited asset under the Corporation's custody shalll be directed, to and resolved by, such
agency, tribunal or court hearing the case.

SEC. 12. Capitalization and Initial Funding. - The capital of the Corporation shall be
five hundred million pesos (PhP 500,000,000.00), to be fully subscribed by the Government
of the Republic of the Philippines, one hundred million pesos (PhP 100,000,000.00) of which
shall be fully paid for by the Government within three (3) years upon the effectivity of this
Charter and the balance to be paid for within a period of three (3) years thereafter, in such
manner and form as the Government, through the Secretary of Finance and Secretary of
Budget and Management, may thereafter determine. The initial funding for the operations of
the Corporation for the first year following the effectivity of this Charter shall be advanced by
the DOF, Thereafter, the capitalization of the Corporation shall be paid for by the
Government by way of appropriations from Congress.

SEC. 13. By-Laws and Rules. ~ The Corporation shall adopt its by-laws, rules of
procedure and other regulatory issuances within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this
Charter, and as often thereafter as exigencies may require.

SEC. 14. Transitory Provision. - Upon the enactment of this Charter, the
Privatization and Management Office (PMO) shall wind up its affairs and be dissolved
pursuant to applicable laws and rules. The existing staff of the PMO, however, shall be
absorbed by the Corporation and converted jpso jure as its core unit, provided, all PMO
officers and employees who transition into the Corporation's staff shall not suffer any
diminution of benefits or disturbance of tenure, provided further, all PMO officers and
employees who choose not to be part of the Corporation shall be entitled to separation
benefits as provided by law. For the purpose of this Section, the Corporation shall not be
regarded as a continuation of the corporate personality of the PMO.

SEC. 15. Separability Clause. ~ If any provision of this Charter shall be declared
unconstitutional, any other provision not affected thereby shalll remain in full force and effect,

SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or
parts thereof inconsistent with this Charter are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.


1 SEC. 17. Effectivity. - This Charter shall take effect within fifteen (15) days after its
2. publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation

3 Approved