Sick Developments.

Below, a letter from Portugal, the Estate Lawyer, making excuses for himself. He can't even get his facts straight when in Sept. 1, 2008, he sent me an email stating :

As to the contents of the Sta Ana property, please be advised that in such matters, I no longer consider it part of my engagement to make such an inventory.

Of course, he may be suffering from lapse of memory sickness. But, the more likely scenario is that he may simply be being told what to do. What a lawyer, huh. I had copied the letter below to all the other heirs and none have expressed their opinion on this. Do they condone this type of service?

BTW, someone had suggested that since I am the only one opposed to Portugal's proposal on the EJS the people in Manila may have already gone ahead with the estate settlement. If this is true - Good luck on that.

Note the dates on the thread:

--- On Mon, 9/22/08, Jaime P. Portugal wrote:
From: Jaime P. Portugal
Subject: Re: Fw: Estate Settlement
To: ntangere----
Date: Monday, September 22, 2008, 3:22 AM

Dear Mr. Gamboa - I express my regrets for the delay. I have
not been well for nearly a month and I have just started to
go back to work. I will reply to your concerns soonest I am
fully back to work. Thank you.

JJ Portugal


--- On Fri, 8/29/08, Noel Gamboa  wrote:

> From: Noel Gamboa 
> Subject: Fw: Estate Settlement
> To: "Jaime Portugal" , "JJ
Portugal"
> Cc: "Domingo J. de la Fuente","gamboafamily", "Lily O. Boyle"
, "Bobby de la Fuente", "Joel de la Fuente","Elpidio Gamboa", "Benjie G. de
la Fuente"
> Date: Friday, August 29, 2008, 9:31 PM
> Atty Portugal,
>
> This is the second mailing of my follow-up letter regarding
> the estate settlement of my late parents, particularly
> assets in the Sta Ana house, last Aug 12, 2008 . Be reminded
> that it is
your duty and responsibility to communicate to
> me, your client, as well as the other heirs, developments
> in  my parents estate settlement.
>
> Noel Gamboa
>
>
>
> --- On Wed, 8/27/08, Noel Gamboa 
> wrote:
> From: Noel Gamboa 
> Subject: Estate Settlement
> To: "JJ Portugal" ,
> "Jaime Portugal" 
> Cc: "Domingo J. de la Fuente"
> , "gamboafamily"
> , "Lily O. Boyle"
> , "Bobby de la Fuente"
> , "Joel de la Fuente"
> , "Elpidio Gamboa"
> , "Benjie G. de la
> Fuente" 
> Date: Wednesday, August 27, 2008, 1:33 PM
>

> Atty Portugal,
>
> I am still waiting for your report on the assets in my
> deceased parents house in Sta Ana, Manila. It has been more
> than two weeks since my inquiry, and as a matter of
> courtesy, any lawyer would have given an update of some
> kind.
>
> Also, if you had decided to do so, your sworn testimony(or
> whatever legal language apply) that the bank account
> certificate of my late mother that you sent me last Aug. 12,
> 2008 is one and the same as the certificate you got from
> Manuel dated February 26, 2008.
>
> This settlement is 6 months old. Had we considered no
> "short cuts," this settlement would be over by
> now!
>
> The following are now my positions on your proposals:
>
> 1) My position on the Jala-jala property remain the same -
> it may not be included in the settlement document.
>

> 2) I change my position on the Mitsubishi SUV. To
>  promote genuine transparency, it's disposition should
> go through the usual, legal procedure. I am now not donating
> it to anyone to expedite its disposition.
>
> 3) Our late mother's bank aacounts: It does not look
> like you are prepared to swear on your lawyer's oath on
> this. So, I reiterate my position - I am not signing any
> waiver. Ownership of these accounts need not have been
> changed in the first place. Furthermore, Manuel already has
> full, if not total control over these accounts.
>
> Finally, to all who are fair minded, let us get this thing
> done. Be it the long way, so long as it is done correctly.
>
> Atty Portugal, I hope that I don't have to wait for
> another two-three weeks to get a reply from you.
>
> Noel
Gamboa

Mamang's Coffee table.

To: "Lily Gamboa"
Date: Friday, September 26, 2008, 2:39 PM

Liwayway,

There is this question of a coffee table that was made out from a block of hardwood given by Lolo Amboy to Mamang. While still in Loubet Mamang complained to me that this coffee table belongs to her. She mentioned this to me again during my vacation in Manila in 1997.

I saw this coffee table for the first time in Fred Mendoza's house, your ex-husband, in San JUan during his birthday party in 2001. I can still see Mamang's sad, helpless face as we sat in front of this coffee table while Fred looked so proud "owning" it. Mamang, referring to the table, whispered to me in her dialect, "Akon Ini," This is mine!

I do not know, if Mamang ever told you about this. Probably not. If she had, you probably would have done something considering that you always claimed to be her defender. "Bakit nila inaaway ang Nanay ko!" I remember you saying, as if you are the only one who cared about her.

Now, Mamang makes herself felt and again I am reminded of this coffee table. Did you ask Mamang if you could have this hardwood made into a coffee table or did you just take it on your own? You probably just took it. Otherwise, Mamang would not be complaining.

In any case, if you had not done so yet, you must get this coffee table back and brought to Lolo Amboy's house or the Mayor Mosoleo in Romblon, close to where Mamang is now buried.

Just so you know, I don't really care if you do something. Mamang can come and make her presence felt anytime she wants. But, until I know you at least tried, I'll just keep reminding you everytime she does.

Kuya Noel

Current Status.

On January, 2008, my mother(Mamang) passed away. She passed away intestate. On February, 2008, an Estate Lawyer was hired to draw an extra-judicial settlement document(EJS) to allocate assets among 6 legal heirs. We are now going on the 8th month of the settlement.

There is disagreement on how to proceed with the settlement. The properties in question are my mother’s Mitsubishi SUV and her PNB accounts. To expedite the settlement, and/or use proceeds from sale and/or withdrawal of monies from said accounts to pay for settlement expenses, the lawyer had proposed for all heirs to donate the SUV to heirs residing in the Philippines. He also proposed that all heirs sign a waiver to make no claims on my mother’s accounts and give them to Manuel(Nonoy), the oldest sibling.

I do not agree with the estate lawyers proposals!


The SUV.

The original owner’s registration of the Mitsubishi was lost. In a conversation with my bother Elpidio(Niniboy), he told me that Nonoy had at some point offered to give the SUV to our sister Liwayway. That Nonoy also proposed to keep it under his care for other siblings to use should they come home to visit in Manila. Nonoy also expressed interest in the Sta Ana house, not to sell it, but instead keep it in the family under his management.

According to Niniboy, he objected to this idea, saying that the SUV is not Nonoy's to give, and that properties left by our parents belong to all heirs, equally.

Through his own initiative, Niniboy tried to obtain a replacement registration. He claims fowl when what he thought was a sincere offer of assistance from Nonoy's driver, Jun Mayor, fizzled out. Unable to secure the car replacement registration himself, Niniboy confers the issue to the estate lawyer to resolve.


The PNB Accounts.

When the estate lawyer started to work on the EJS, he noted that our mother’s PNB bank accounts can not be included in the EJS since according to him the Bank Certificate of ownership shows that the accounts are solely in Nonoy's name! Below is part of April 3, 2008 e-mail from Atty. Portugal to Niniboy as follows:

Please note that I did not include the PNB peso and dollar accounts, details of which were provided by Nonoy, since according to the Bank Certification dated February 26, 2008, it appears that the said accounts are both in the name of Manuel M. Gamboa, and not in the name of your late mother.

Bank Certificate of ownership(BCO), at least the ones I saw, have the name of the owner in big bold letters. Anyone, even an idiot, can not mistake reading it. Portugal e-mailed me a number of times urging me to sign the waiver. It took him three weeks to obtain another BCO when I asked him for proof that the PNB accounts are still in Mamangs’ name.

The owners name on the face of the document are in big bold letters. How can one mistake reading such a document? Besides, even if the document is true, which is doubtful, it indicates “Or” joint ownership. This means that Nonoy already has full, if not total control over the accounts!


Extra-Judicial Settlement process.

Excerpts from Niniboy’s e-mail dated Feb 8, 2008:

The title to the Sta. Ana home, the car owners registration certificate, and the certificate of stocks of Papang are in the safekeeping of Nonoy. Nonoy told us that the title to the Sibuyan property is about to be released, and that the title will be in the name of us, the children.

There is the legal requirement and process, called extra-judicial estate settlement, to transfer the title of the Sta Ana home, Mamang's car, and the shares of stocks, the Sibuyan property (assuming it will not be in the names of all of us) from the names of Papang and Mamang to us, the heirs. In brief summary, Extra-judicial settlement of the estate requires the accomplishment of certain documents, placing an estimate on the value of the properties left behind, deducting funeral and hospitalization expenses , payment of estate tax ( and possibly payment of penalties because the estate of Papang should have been settled 10 years ago), publication in the newspaper of extra-judicial settlement. After this process is completed, all of the documents mentioned here will be submitted to the Register of Deeds of Manila , for the issuance of a new title to the Sta. Ana property to us the heirs; to the LTO, for the issuance of a new owner's certificate of ownership in the names of us the heirs; to the corporate secretary of FEU and PICOP for the issuance of stocks certificates to us the heirs, and to the Register of Deeds with respect the to Sibuyan property, for the issuance of title to us, the heirs.

For your assurance, there will be no distribution now of any of the properties left behind by Mamang and Papang .

When new titles, car registration certificate , and certificate of stocks reflecting a co-ownership of the mentioned [rp[ertoes are already in our names, we can decide on how to dispose of our respective shares in the co-ownership.

We will need to hire the services of an expert lawyer. I can do it myself , but I would rather not because I am a party and an heir. But I will supervise the lawyer and keep his fees low.

The Estate settlement process as related in this e-mail is clear enough. Transfer of ownership and eventual partition of estate to all heirs. That is what should be done, no shortcuts, no creative fixes.

There is also talk of conflict of Interest, of supervising the lawyer, and of keeping lawyer fees low. All talk! Meanwhile, the Lawyer's retainer of 15,000/month keep running, like a taxi cab stranded in traffic somewhere.


Nonoy and Liwayway behind the scenes.

Not to be outdone, below is Nonoy’s response. The following is part of an April 26,2008 e-mail that also covers the Sibuyan property. It shows Nonoy’s bullying and controlling nature. It also addresses Niniboy’s points about hiring a lawyer and who’s the "big boss!"

I skipped some of Nonoy's self-serving statements but, the letter in full is now available to view:

The reason we agreed to hire an outside lawyer is because as you said sarcastically to me and Lily at that meeting in Serendra that " I am a corporate lawyer and this ( estate settlement ) is not my expertise. Besides , I have to earn a living ". Now, with the expertise of an outside lawyer therefor we can maximize the value of the estate and avail of all the tax priviledges within specified deadlines...

I also hope you realize that your suggestions in the email are not automatically the accepted direction . Lily and I only appointed you to coordinate with the lawyer to see to it that all heirs are equally and fairly recognized and all deadlines are met to favorably to our satisfaction. It didnt mean that I was relinquishing my leadership in the settlement...

With regards to Sibuyan I will be taking the lead... You have unecessarily alarmed the people that you have talked to regarding this matter with your seemingly distrusting and legalistic tone. They also learned that you were already inviting outsiders to buy the place which they have tried to keep intact all this time. They have called me and asked me why you are doing this and why you are the one doing all this when you are not the eldest son and never showed any interest in Sibuyan in the past.( In their culture they respect the pecking order without the necessity of written documents) Your last visit to Sibuyan was during your daughter's wedding in Manila .

I am scheduled to go to Romblon on the 28th to finalise the eviction of my tenant in Logbon. I will make a side trip to Sibuyan to look into the matter of titling and make a report on the result. I will at the same time inspect the much needed roof repair job that I instructed Jun to do on Mamangs House. I will finalize the eviction of Nenet ( Mamangs caretaker ) from the property and settle the dispute between her and Donoy, the real tenant. Perhaps that will spare you the trouble of going to Sibuyan for this purpose alone.

All the keys are with me for safekeeping. I will take full responsibility for any loss or damage to these properties but at the same time expect that no duplicates be made surreptitiously without my permission. If and when anyone wants to use it, they only have to tell me directly. The same goes for the Sta Ana House and the Mitsubishi car.

If you need to know anything regarding Sta Ana or the Mitsubishi car or Sibuyan, you just have to call me. Your round-about ways are causing all these people you talk to nervous and suspect that something wrong is afoot. By doing that -You make me look like the bad guy.

This guy talks about evicting his own mother's caretaker from a land he does not even own and he's worried about looking like the bad guy.

Other properties.

There is also the question about the contents of the house in Sta Ana. I had asked the estate lawyer about this, saying that all heirs are entitled to know about it. On Sept. 1, 2008, Jaime Portugal's response:

As to the contents of the Sta Ana property, please be advised that in such matters, I no longer consider it part of my engagement to make such an inventory.

Well, whatever is in the Sta Ana house is part of the estate, is it not? If the estate lawyer is not going to make or manage an accounting of properties there then who is supposed to do it?

There is also Mamang’s personal effects. They must also be accounted for, made known, and their manner of disposition consulted or divided among all heirs.


The Estate Lawyer.

Jaime Portugal is Nonoy’s fraternity brother. Niniboy had expressed conflict of interest with him as our lawyer from the beginning. Ironically, it is Niniboy himself who recommended for me to agree to hire this lawyer – to do so ASAP to take advantage of a govt. tax amnesty program. It turned out that we never had a chance to make the tax amnesty from the get go. When I asked Niniboy why he agreed and recommended to hire this lawyer, he said he wanted to give Nonoy a chance to prove himself.

It becomes more apparent that Niniboy's fondness of Portugal grows over time. In response to my numerous unanswered queries on the status of the settlement to the lawyer, Niniboy writes on May 18, 2008:

Atty JJ Portugal and I are pleasantly working well together. My personal feeling is that if he quits as our lawyer now , the process will even take longer to complete, and will be giving Nonoy the opportunity to blame the two of us for the delay in his usual manner.

Kaya konting pasensya na lang tayo. Meron ng liwanag. Huwag na nating bigyan ng dahilan para magresign ang lawyer.

The properties to be included are roughly the Sta. Ana home, the car, the bank accounts of Mamang, the shares of Papang in FEU. The PICOP shares look like of little value to bother with.

It is unfortunate that Niniboy seems more interested in his personal relationship with Portugal - how he appears to him. He now answers questions meant for the estate lawyer.

Nevertheless, Niniboy is right about conflict of interest. What is needed is someone who can work impartially and independently. Someone who can take to task all estate matters, including the contents of the house in Sta Ana and Mamang's personal effects.


Where I stand.

There is no need for shortcuts and "creative" machinations. Why this urge to speed-up a process that in reality can only be completed through it's own course? The title of ownership of the house in Sta Ana needs to be transferred in the name of all heirs and the house may take time to sell. The same process apply for the SUV and the PNB accounts.

I am not donating the SUV to anyone and I am not signing any waiver! An inventory of the contents on the house in Sta Ana and of Mamang's personal effects must be made and made known to all heirs!

There have been a lot of talk about transparency. Well, why not walk the talk, as the saying goes? Lets have transparency in the estate settlement.


What Next?

I will be covering other issues relating to the Estate Settlement in the following posts. I will also post correspondence letters in their entirety.

8/11/08 - PNB Certificate

Click on the image to enlarge.



BOC sent by Portugal. Obviously not the same as the one dated Feb.26, 2008 he describes in his April 3, 2008 e-mail to Elpidio(Niniboy).

5/18/08 - Niniboy: Portugal is my Guy.

April 18, letter from Niniboy favoring Portugal. I was expecting a more professional relationship between these two. To relate facts as they stand - Not excuses and pleas to keep quite.

Niniboy, you can still take over this settlement and do it as you had proposed in your February letter - the right way!

----

Dear Noel,

I read your email to Atty JJ Portugal. I am a lawyer myself and your older brother.

Like many practicing lawyers, Atty Portugal has many cases to handle and our's is only one of them. I would say that he is doing his best under the circumstances.

Let's give him more time. I am happy that he has not shown any bias in favor of Nonoy and that he respects me as an elder lawyer. He is probably just in his early forties.

Like you, I would like to have the estate of Papang and Mamang settled as quickly as possible and the properties partitioned, sold and equitably distributed, except the Sibuyan property.

And you know how much I have already suffered from the tirades and lies of Nonoy for trying to do a good job for everybody.

Atty JJ Portugal and I are pleasantly working well together. My personal feeling is that if he quits as our lawyer now , the process will even take longer to complete, and will be giving Nonoy the opportunity to blame the two of us for the delay in his usual manner.

Kaya konting pasensya na lang tayo. Meron ng liwanag. Huwag na nating bigyan ng dahilan para magresign ang lawyer.

The properties to be included are roughly the Sta. Ana home, the car, the bank accounts of Mamang, the shares of Papang in FEU. The PICOP shares look like of little value to bother with.

I told you already about the Sibuyan property in my email to you earlier today.

I am praying that you will understand my request.

Your Brother,

Niniboy

04/27/08 Niniboy's reply to "The bad guy."

Below is Niniboy's reply to Nonoy's 4/26/2008 accusations. It brings to light Nonoy's double talk, his obvious, poor schemes, and who has to gain in stalling the settlement. If Niniboy could only stand up and follow through on his talks, things may turn out differently.

- On Sun, 4/27/08, Elpidio Gamboa wrote:
From: Elpidio Gamboa
Subject: Re: Honoring Mamang's life work in Sibuyan
To: "gamboafamily"
Cc: ntangere@yahoo.com, "Domingo J. de la Fuente" , "Lily O. Boyle" , "Victor M. Gamboa" , "Bobby de la Fuente" , "Joel de la Fuente" , "Benjie G. de la Fuente"
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2008, 1:10 AM

Nonoy,

Who are the people calling you and telling you that I am selling the property of Mamang? Are they Auntie Sonia ?, Uncle Raul? , Auntie, Fely? , or even the relatives of Auntie Emma.? You never mentioned any names, so I cannot verify your charges. Again you speak in generalities.

And how can I sell the Sibuyan property of Mamang without the approval of all the heirs and siblings?

I have said all over again to all the Siblings that the Sibuyan property will not be sold but willl be converted into a Foundation of Mamang for the benefit of all.

What is you counter offer? Again you speak in generalities based on your self-proclaimed experience somewhere in the past. In fact you do not have a counter offer. You only said that a Foundation is a very expensive option, again without specifying why

So you have taken it upon yourself to file the reapplication in the Sibuyan property left by Mamang, assuming that it is not yet titled. Did you get permission from all the heirs and siblings for this ? Will you file it in your own name , then disclose in a back- to -back Trust Agreement, duly notarized , the nature of the application as originally Mamang's,and commit in writing to all the heirs siblings in the Trust Agreement that the applications is not for yours alone, but for the benefit of all heirs and siblings in equal shares, and that a proper Regina M. Gamboa Foundation, Inc. will be formed for the benefit of all? You are silent on this

Do not insist on verbal instructions , if any, to you which are self-serving . Do not also insist on that being eldest in the siblings now with the death of Ateng (how I miss Ateng), you can make decisions for everybody without telling the heirs and siblings before hand and asking for their permission

On the Mitsubishi car, which is now owned by all the Siblings, tell us in this email who is using it and who is driving it? We have the right to know, and you should, without being told, make an accounting of what is happening on property we now own as siblings now own. What is wrong if I call Jun to inquire?

Remember that time when you told me that the car will be parked in Sta. Ana after Lily returns for the States, for every sibling to use the car ? My question then to you was who will be using it when all our siblings are abroad? Your angry reply was : "Why, do you want to park the car in Antipolo?" You did not answer the question squarely .

The Sta Ana property, the car, the Sibuyan property, the shares of Papang in FEU and FERN are properties of the heirs and siblings. They have the right to have access to those without asking permission from you.

Didn't I tell you several times that Dodoy wanted the estate settlement done quickly, so that he can get his share in the sale of the Sta. Ana property and the car,and the FEU stocks , so he can use the money to buy property here in Antipolo or a condo.

You are pointing to dead people, including Uncle Nonoy, in accusing me of wrongdoing,. That is hear say and easy to do.

Papang and I had very warm relationship. I am very surprised when you told everybody that there is rift between between us . My gifts to Papang of Salonpas was because he used to use that in the Philippines when he was here, and siblings who know should remember. I have been also sending Kaminomoko. By the way, I didn't receive back the gifts I sent Papang.

Papang has a letter to me, which I sent all the siblings copies of. That you speak for his feelings for me as opposed to your vebal statement that he didn't like me.

You also made mention of my suggestion to Noel of reconcillation. Yes, I love my brother Noel, as I love my siblings. I invited him to come to Manila and promised to visit him in New York. What is wrong with that?

My decision to go to Sibuyan was made ahead of yours --- and that is on the record. Nobody can tell me not to go because I co-own that Sibuyan property.

I have been reporting to all the siblings and heirs consistently and I will continue to do so. My language has been professional and straigthforward.

On the other hand, your email even said that my last visit to Sibuyan was during the weddng of my daughter, Celia . That is foul and false language, to say the least. And for your information, and for every else's, my last visit to Sibuyan was with Mary, Rhea, and Edna, after long after the wedding of Celia.

Nonoy, please use civil language. I hope the mention of my daughter Celia will be the last .

Niniboy

4/26/08 - Look like the bad guy.

Below is Nonoy's reply to one of Niniboy's emails. There is a lot going on in this letter that I did not know about, like that of my father's old car(Vauxall), which Nonoy complains about which I thought is silly.

This letter really revolves around the Jala-jala property that Nonoy accuses Niniboy of stealing. In this letter Nonoy scrambles to make up stories to cover his ass when Niniboy produced a letter from Papang offering him the Jala-jala property. It finally exposes Nonoy as a true liar.

When Nonoy comes to New York, he has bad gossip. Worse, his gossip is about people in our own family. Apparently, he believes that putting other people down elevates his own stature. He is also quick to praise himself; what a great speaker he is, what a good manager he is, etc. Unfortunately for him, nobody agrees with his self serving declarations. I do not believe that he has done anything good for any of his siblings. Even our own father had a thing or two to say about him saying, "the only thing Nonoy is good at is asking money from our mother."

So, what has this got to do with the Estate Settlement? Well, it's easy enough to figure out. Just read his letter below and decide for yourself.

Can this gay be trusted?





On 4/26/08, gamboafamily wrote:

To Neneboy,

If there is any reconcilation to be made it should be between you and your conscience. As for me, I have long forgiven and forgotten your quarrel with Papang until you and Noel brought it up again for what ever purposes it may serve the both of you. When you wrote in the email that you " didnt steal anything from Papang or Mamang " and challenged everybody, I was surprised , but I didnt realize you were alluding to me. Only after you and Noel have reconciled and vowed love for each other in the email , did it become clear to me that it is me after all you are pointing to. Anyway, since you have been repeatedly asking for it, let me indulge you in this reconciliation stuff of yours so as to hasten your healing , put this matter aside where it belongs, and probably at best change your unexplained haste in selling Mamang's properties.

Papang told me in so many instances that he got so mad at you for the following reasons:

1. The disappearance of his Vauxall car after he left for the States,

2. the retirement pays and stock dividends you have collected in his behalf , the amounts which you did not turn over to him. He only learned all this , much later , when he came back from Dr. de Guzman. Papang told me that your answer to him was you spent it in your first Antipolo house which you at that time have just started to build.

3. your silence and inaction on the Jala jala property which he requested you to look into , he had to send Lita and Mario Patdu to check on it.

Unfortunately, at that time, you were in depression and was just recovering from a nervous breakdown.Every one was worried about you. Papang said he must have been too harsh on you - because after all the above, to show his displeasure ,he refused all your pasalubongs and sent them back to you. But later , to make amends and so as not to aggravate your situation , he told Ateng and me during one of our visits to Indianna , that he will bequeath all these things to you in writing to relieve you of the guilt , and for Ateng and me to understand the situation. I dont remember now if I was the one who delivered to you that letter (which you copied everyone in the email), together with the salonpas and gingko bilova capsules that you sent him as pasalubong.

Also, I will not ask you to explain why you were reported to Mamang by Uncle Nonoy ( who was then a GSIS dept head ), as cashing in Papang's GSIS pension check even way after he was already reported dead. Only when that was discovered did the pension checks discreetly and rightfully went to Mamang.

Now after having said that , I hope you will internalize, put a final closure to your still unresolved differences with Papang. I was not surprised why you didnt honor him with your presence during his wake and burial. If I were in your shoes, I will honor that Jala jala gift of Papang to you by shouldering all the expenses however much, to have it transferred to your name (you can use that letter as evidence and we will not contest it). Refusal is tantamount to discrediting all that it meant to Papang as his life investment.

And then probably your acceptance will put you in a positive and trusting frame of mind. The reason we agreed to hire an outside lawyer is because as you said sarcastically to me and Lily at that meeting in Serendra that " I am a corporate lawyer and this ( estate settlement ) is not my expertise. Besides , I have to earn a living ". Now, with the expertise of an outside lawyer therefor we can maximize the value of the estate and avail of all the tax priviledges within specified deadlines. Let us just focus on this with the assurance that all the six heirs are duly recognized and get their fair share.

I thought I read an email from Kuya Baby that he has relented his share equally amongst his children. I was happy about that voluntary self- negation for the reason of delicadeza. And I also remember Bobby saying that he will be representing all his siblings in the estate settlement. Have they changed their minds on this matter ? Have Joel and Benj and Kuya Baby requested you to furnish them with your updates and suggestions ? I thought it was agreed that Bobby will be doing all that for them.

I also hope you realize that your suggestions in the email are not automatically the accepted direction . Lily and I only appointed you to coordinate with the lawyer to see to it that all heirs are equally and fairly recognized and all deadlines are met to favorably to our satisfaction. It didnt mean that I was relinquishing my leadership in the settlement.

Meantime, I took note of your suggestion of a foundation - I will mentor you on the organizational requirement, workings of a foundation as I was Chairman of The Hanapbuhay Foundation of the San Miguel Packaging Products Division . But there are other options to consider and the foundation is the most expensive to take . At the moment , let us not allow this to delay or distract us from our immediate concerns.

With regards to Sibuyan I will be taking the lead. I will be going there at the end of the month to look into the status of titling matter. I will pursue the application if needed. You have unecessarily alarmed the people that you have talked to regarding this matter with your seemingly distrusting and legalistic tone. They also learned that you were already inviting outsiders to buy the place which they have tried to keep intact all this time. They have called me and asked me why you are doing this and why you are the one doing all this when you are not the eldest son and never showed any interest in Sibuyan in the past.( In their culture they respect the pecking order without the necessity of written documents) Your last visit to Sibuyan was during your daughter's wedding in Manila .

I am scheduled to go to Romblon on the 28th to finalise the eviction of my tenant in Logbon. I will make a side trip to Sibuyan to look into the matter of titling and make a report on the result. I will at the same time inspect the much needed roof repair job that I instructed Jun to do on Mamangs House. I will finalize the eviction of Nenet ( Mamangs caretaker ) from the property and settle the dispute between her and Donoy, the real tenant. Perhaps that will spare you the trouble of going to Sibuyan for this purpose alone.

All the keys are with me for safekeeping. I will take full responsibility for any loss or damage to these properties but at the same time expect that no duplicates be made surreptitiously without my permission. If and when anyone wants to use it, they only have to tell me directly. The same goes for the Sta Ana House and the Mitsubishi car.

If you need to know anything regarding Sta Ana or the Mitsubishi car or Sibuyan, you just have to call me. Your round-about ways are causing all these people you talk to nervous and suspect that something wrong is afoot. By doing that -You make me look like the bad guy.

I will pursue emailing everyone with the serial "Honoring Mamangs life work in Sibuyan " to put the settlement of Mamang's estate in the right tone and direction. Neneboy will continue to coordinate with the lawyer and provide us of the lawyers update which are self explanatory without his side comments.

Also if you noticed , I intentionally did not give copies of this email to the lawyer, Joel and Benj to spare them of unecessary and unpleasant trivia. Bobby will know what information to pass on to his bros..

I dont expect you to answer this letter .

FYI,

Nonoy

4/03/08 - Estate Lawyer on PNB Accounts

----Inline Attachment Follows-----

Dear All,

I am forwarding to you the latest email of the estate lawyer. For your information.

Niniboy/Tito Niniboy

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: JJ Portugal
Date: Apr 3, 2008 7:46 AM
Subject:
To: elpidio.gamboa

Jun, furnishing you a first draft of the estate settlement for your
parents. Pls note that the valuation of the shares of stock for some
companies are still blank, as I am determining with the SEC if such
companies still in fact exist. Also, since most if not all of the
shares of stock were issued in the 60s and early 70s, the par value
may have been modified for corporate financing purposes. I am also
awaiting a formal reply from the UCPB about the extent of your late
mother's shareholdings, since the copy of the stock certificate
furnished me states she has 36 common shares as of September 1976.

Please note that I did not include the PNB peso and dollar accounts,
details of which were provided by Nonoy, since according to the Bank
Certification dated February 26, 2008, it appears that the said
accounts are both in the name of Manuel M. Gamboa, and not in the
name of your late mother.

I assume that your siblings based in the US will be executing a power
of attorney authorizing a Manila-based sibling to sign for them;
absent any information regarding this detail, all siblings are
assumed to be signing in their own behalf, except for your sister, Ma. Elena.

Please revert to me at your soonest convenience for clarifications.
Thanks and regards.


JJ Portual
Suite 507 Pacific Center
San Miguel Avenue, Ortigas Center
1605 Pasig City Philippines