PSE Circular for Brokers No. 2694-98

December 2, 1998 PSE CIRCULAR FOR BROKERS NO. 2694-98 December 1, 1998 PHILIPPINE STOCK EXCHANGE INC . Phil. Stock Exchange Centre, Exchange Road Ortigas Center, Pasig City, Metro Manila Fax No. 638-0809, 637-8811 Attention: Ruben L . Almadro Vice President Compliance and Surveillance Group Gentlemen : We make reference to your letter regarding the unusual movement in the trading of Centennial City Inc. (CCI) shares today. Please be informed that the Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) between the Public Estates Authority and Amari Coastal Bay Development Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Centennial City Inc., is presently under negotiations. Although negotiations on the JVA will be concluded in the near future, no official document has been (Illegible Portion of PSE File) and signed as of this writing. We surmise that the movement in the trading of the CITY shares may be attributed to the newspaper article that was published last Saturday, 28 November 1998, in the Philippine Star, a copy of which is herein attached for your reference. A perusal of the said article would reveal the government's positive stand on reclamation projects in general and on the Boulevard 2000 in particular. As pointed out in the newspaper, the Boulevard 2000 plan includes the PEA-Amari Joint Venture Project. LLjur In view of the Exchange policy of full, fair, timely and accurate disclosure of material information that may affect the value and trading of securities, may we reassure you that any official development on our end will be disclosed immediately to the Exchange for dissemination to its member brokers. Trusting you find the above in order. Very truly yours, (SGD.) DAISY L. PARKER Corporate Secretary PEA-Amari deal to push through President Estrada has virtually given the go-signal for the government to continue with a reclamation project that was described two years ago by an opposition senator as "the mother of all scams." The 750-hectare joint business deal between the Public Estates Authority (PEA) and the Ital-Thai Amari Bay Development Corp., which former Senate President Ernesto Maceda said cost the government some P120 billion in lost revenues, may now be up and running again. At the groundbreaking rites of the Metropolitan Park and the Toyota Manila Bay Corp. at the reclamation area in Pasay City, the President revealed that he has already instructed PEA Chairman Frisco San Juan to speed up all projects under the Boulevard 2000 plan. This plan includes the controversial reclamation project of PEA and Amari Mr. Estrada said negotiations are ongoing to iron out kinks in the deal. The PEA was tasked earlier by the President to amend the contract with Amari, particularly those deemed anomalous by Congress and a Cabinet fact-finding body headed by former Budget Secretary Salvador Enriquez Jr. The President also ruled our suggestions by some lawmakers to scrap the PEA-Amari deal, saying the government should instead encourage real estate developers to invest in land reclamation projects. The proposal to reject the deal stemmed from Maceda's expose in 1996 that the government lost billions of pesos in the contract. Under the PEA-Amari agreement, the government will get 325 of the 750-hectare property to be reclaimed without spending a single centavo. The rest of the unreclaimed land will be developed by Amari at a cost of P30 billion, including the construction of road networks, sewerage systems and other infrastructure. The senator alleged that the agreement also provided for an asset-sharing scheme that would allow Amari to acquire the prime reclaimed land at a grossly undervalued price. Worse, Maceda said the contract was hammered out after a group of Filipino and Thai businessmen paid P1.5 billion in "kickbacks" and "grease" money to government officials. Maceda said the PEA sold the land to Amari for P1,250 per square meter even though adjoining parcels of land owned by retail magnate Henry Sy and the Uniwide Sales Corp. were selling at P90,000 per square meter at the time. LLpr The senator's expose resulted in the dismissal of PEA board member Arturo Trinidad. President Estrada said his administration will proceed with the development of the reclaimed areas especially now that the 36-hectare Metropolitan area is being put up. In his speech, Mr. Estrada also lauded investors of the government's Boulevard 2000 project. "Boulevard 2000 not only provides an opportunity to improve the urban functions of the metropolis but also compliments the vibrancy and history of the old city by priming Manila as a center of commerce and tourism." he said. "This is an assurance to everyone in the business community that they can now proceed in making their plans and projections without any fear of any change in government policies. This kind of consistency and stability which I promise will hopefully enable us to continue with our good standing, "he said.