The president of Vallacar Bus Transit, which operates the Ceres Bus Lines nationwide, on Monday appealed to the Supreme Court for immediate issuance of a writ of amparo to allow him and other board members of the company to enter and leave their company head offices in the Ceres compound in Purok Hinaya, Mansilingan, Bacolod City.
Roy Yanson, president of Vallacar, made the statement after an estimated 300 heavily armed policemen from the provincial police office six led by Police Brig. Gen Rene Pamuspusan entered their compound and prevented employees and anyone from entering or leaving the premises last August 8 and 9.
The forcible entry came despite the order by Philippine National Police Chief Oscar Albayalde last August 8 directing Pamuspusan, PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group chief Amador Corpus and their men, Police Colonel Benliner Capili of the Bacolod CIDG and newly installed Bacolod police chief Police Colonel Henry Binas, to stand down.
Albayalde condemned the incident even as he assured the public that the PNP will remain impartial in the Yamson family’s corporate infighting.
The PNP chief also ordered a probe on the order given by Police Colonel Michael John Dubria, acting chief of the Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies, ordering the replacement of the new security agency, AY-76, with the old security agency of the bus company, the Armored Guard Negros Security Agency or AGNSA.
Dubria’s order last August 2 was used by Binas to deploy 300 of his men at the North and South Ceres bus terminals, which led to the padlocking of the VTI South terminals in Sambok, Bacolod last August 7.
The SOSIA order contravened the former order of Brigadier General Noli Romana of the SOSIA last July 17, which essentially allowed the assumption of security duties of A-Y76 Security or ASSI over AGNSA.
Emily Yanson-Ramos, one of the six siblings involved in the intra-corporate feud, in a press statement on Monday denied the claim of the camp of her younger brother Leo Rey, the company’s erstwhile president, that they are behind the loss of vital corporate papers.
“Why would we ransack our own offices and steal those documents which Leo Rey claims to be missing?” she asked.
Emily, one of the three Yanson sisters, was among the four siblings—together with Roy, Ricardo Jr., and Celina—who ousted Leo Rey as company president in a special board meeting held on July 7. Matriarch Olivia, 85, and sister Ginette are siding with Leo Rey.
Both Roy and Leo Rey are now claiming the presidency as the court has yet to decide whether the July 7 meeting was legal or not.
Reports over the weekend also said the Leo Rey faction able to retake the sprawling Vallacar compound in Mansilingan and the key south terminal in Bacolod City with the help of the PNP’s action.
Atty. Philip Sigfrid Fortun, lead counsel of the company under Roy, Ricky Jr., Celina Yanson-Lopez and Emily, say the action was an “overkill” and a direct violation of their rights as owners of the company.
“This is too much. Imagine 300 cops threatening a small group of people composed of four board members, some staff, and even my legal team who was attending to the needs of our clients inside. What makes the threat even more apparent is the excessive display of firearms and the overwhelmingly huge number of policemen,” Roy Yanson lamented in his petition before the Supreme Court.
The police operation caused extreme stress and prevented Roy, the company president; Ricky, the Vice President for Maintenance; Celina, the Chief Financial Officer; and Emily, the Corporate Secretary and Vice President for Administration, from dispensing their duties.
The board decided to temporarily vacate the compound premises last August 9 after the police presence heightened security risks especially those of the employees.
For his part, Roy assured employees and the riding public that the board remains in control and managing the group of companies. He, however, vowed to seek justice and held those responsible for this accountable before the courts.
“No amount of force ever would deter us from our lifelong commitment to our father, Ricardo, our employees, and riding public to serve this company. We will continue to work. We will continue to protect the livelihood of our employees and ensure that bus operations run smoothly,” Roy said.
Roy and former bus president Leo Rey Yanson began exchanging highly public accusations against each other, following Leo Rey’s termination of services as president. Despite a board ruling last June 21, prohibiting funds withdrawals without the expressed authority of management, Leo Rey reportedly withdrew millions of pesos worth of funds to spite the board. The board had no recourse but to replace him with their eldest brother, Roy as company president.
On Friday, Roy’s camp petitioned the Supreme Court to issue a writ of amparo against PNP officials led by Albayalde.
Also named as respondents in the petition were PNP-CIDG Director Maj. General Amador Corpus, Maj. General Reynaldo Biay, head of the PNP-Civil Security Group, Pamuspusan, regional director of PNP-Region 6, and Col. Michael John Dubria, the acting chief of the PNP Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies.
A writ of amparo is a remedy available to any person whose right to life, liberty, and security has been violated or is threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.
In the 16-page petition, Yanson through lawyers asked the SC to issue the writ “to enjoin respondents from performing acts which threaten the life, liberty and security of his siblings Ricardo V. Yanson Jr. (RJR), Ma. Lourdes Celina Y. Lopez (CYL) and Emily V. Yanson (EVY)”
Yanson Jr. is the VTI Director and vice president of its maintenance operations while Yanson Lopez is also a director and head of finance. Emily is the corporate secretary and vice president of operations.
“Petitioner is filing this suit in his personal capacity as the brother of RJR, CYL, and EVY whose right to life, liberty and security are violated and threatened by the unlawful acts of respondents who are all public officials,” the petitioner said.
In filing the petition, Yanson said the lives, liberty and security of his brother and two sisters are “threatened by respondent’s act of intimidation and the presence of armed policemen” deployed in the VTI head office at the Ceres Compound, Purok Himaya, Brgy. Mansilingan, Bacolod City who he added are poised to swarm and take over the said building where they are holding office.
He said the presence of the policemen also coincided with the takeover of some 100 policemen, including members of the Special Weapons and Tactics team of VTI’s South Terminal in Sambok, Bacolod City last August 7.
“Because of the presence and actions of the armed policemen and the directives of the respondents not to allow the ingress and egress of any person or supplies inside said office , including food and water, RJR, CYL and EVY fear for their lives. Worse, they had cut off electric power within the office no different from what they have done in the South Terminal,” the petitioner said.
Likewise, he said the security agency hired by VTI was removed from the premises of the VTI main office by the respondents.
The petitioner, his brother and two sisters were part of the majority Board of Directors that conducted a Special Board Meeting last July 7 that among others passed resolution replacing their brother, Leo Rey Yanson as VTI President.
Leo Rey has the support of their mother, Olivia V. Yanson and his sister, Ginette Y. Dumancas in the ongoing feud.
In the said July 7 board meeting, a resolution was also passed terminating the services of security agency Armored Guard Negros Security Agency (AGNSA) and the takeover of the security functions by AY76- Security Specialists Inc. (ASSI).
It was Leo Rey who engaged the services of AGNSA to secure VTI’s north and south terminals and the company’s main office.
The petitioner said all went well except for the fact that AGNSA security guards refused to budge from their position at the VTI’s north and south terminals, prompting him to ask the assistance of the PNP-SOSIA through its then head, Brig. General Noli Romana who then directed the AGNSA guards to comply.
On July 12, Leo Rey filed a petition seeking the nullification of the July 7 board resolution before the Bacolod City RTC, which was followed by the petitioner’s and the other board directors filing a petition for injunction to stop him from interfering with their functions as new manager of the bus company.
The petitioner said Dubria interfered despite the court proceedings to have the ASSI security guards replaced by those from AGNSA in an order issued last August 2.
“On his own (Dubria) assumed than an intra-corporate controversy existed at the time ASSI replaced AGNSA guards in the head office and at the North and South Terminals when Leo Ray Yanson’s own pleadings and record that respondents should have examined, showed otherwise,” he said.
He further said that as senior police officers, Albayalde, Biay, and Pamusmusan knew or ought to know the controversy but chose to do nothing.