Instead, she confirmed that the corporation they put up runs a franchise of a popular pizza chain, Greenwich Pizza.
Speaking to ANC's Headstart, Binay said the corporation, Millennium Food Chains Corp., does not own Cups & Mugs Kitchenette & Catering Services, which bagged contracts to run the Makati City Hall cafeteria and supply cakes for Makati's senior citizens.
"The supplier of the cakes is Cups and Mugs, hindi yung Millennium. That is a misleading report. Millennium, of which we are stockholders, does not transact with [Makati] City Hall. Hindi kami [ang supplier]," she said.
Binay said it is too much of a leap to link Millennium to Cups and Mugs although the Chongs are connected to both companies.
She said Millennium is used to run a franchise of Greenwich Pizza.
"Cups and Mugs is a proprietor...Silang dalawa lang ang mangyari, si Chong. We opened that company to franchise Greenwich Pizza. It has nothing, kaya nga the leap from here to there...The reason why they are linking the cake to Millennium is because of Erlinda and Kim Chong. They are part of Millennium. Yun lang," she said.
She said she is open to Senator Antonio Trillanes investigating the issue of the cake supplier contract.
A Court of Appeals freeze order plus supporting documents back claims made by former Makati Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado that the Binay family has close ties with the Chong family.
The freeze order lists Congresswoman Binay, her brother Makati Mayor Junjun Binay and sister Sen. Nancy Binay as incorporators and officers of Millennium, according to the corporation's general information sheet.
The other incorporators are Erlinda Chong (Chairman/President), Kim Tun Chong (Treasurer), Lilia Chavez and Angelico Salud.
Irene Chong and Kimsfer Chong are listed as corporate secretary and director, respectively, as of 2014.
Mercado told the Senate Blue Ribbon sub-committee hearing that the Chongs were Senator Nancy Binay's partner in supplying birthday cakes to senior citizens of Makati City.
Mercado alleged that Binay was supplying cakes through Erlinda Chong. He said Chong's husband is a close friend of former Makati Mayor and now Vice-President Binay.
Another former Makati official also linked Senator Binay to the cakes being distributed by the Makati local government to senior citizens.
Engineer Mario Hechanova, the former head of Makati City's general services department and vice chairman of the bids and awards committee, told the Senate Blue Ribbon sub-committee that no less then Mayor and now Vice President Binay followed up on the payment for the cakes that were being delivered to the senior citizens of Makati.
He claimed the mayor was following up on the payment because it would go to his daughter, Nancy.
"Minsan po pinatawag niya ako at ang sabi niya sa akin: 'Mario, ano ba ang nangyayari dun sa payment sa cake ni Nancy,'" he told the Senate sub-committee.
He said he once had to hold off payment because the list of senior citizens submitted by the social welfare department did not have signatures.
Asked if he believes that Binay's daughter supplies the cakes, Hechanova said: "Sa palagay ko ganun po kasi ang fina follow-up yung bayad e."
The cakes supplied to the Makati government are distributed to the city's senior citizens during birthdays and golden wedding anniversaries.
Last December, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) filed a P46.6 million criminal complaint before the Department of Justice against Cups & Mugs Kitchenette owner Kim Tun Chong for willful attempt to evade tax and deliberate failure to supply correct information in his annual income tax returns for taxable years 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Cups and Mugs Kitchenette had supplied birthday cakes distributed by Makati City Hall for senior citizens, and also has a contract to manage the cafeteria at Makati City Hall and Ospital ng Makati from 2009 to 2011.
The BIR said a preliminary investigation showed that Cups & Mugs was paid by Makati City government a total of P107.64 million in the three year period -- 2009 - P35.94 million; 2010 - P42.11 million; and 2011 - P29.59 million.
However, despite earning millions, the BIR said Chong substantially underdeclared his correct income and deliberately failed to pay the correct taxes.
TIES WITH CHONGS
The Binay family's ties with the Chongs are not limited to the supply of cakes for the city's senior citizens. The Chong matriarch is also accused of being used as a front by Binay to buy a prime piece of land in Makati for only P17.75 million.
In his testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon subcommittee last September, Mercado accused Binay of using Erlinda Chong as a dummy to purchase the 8,877-square meter land in Barangay Comembo, Makati in 1999.
He said the property was earlier leased to Meriras Realty and Development Corporation and was later purchased by Chong from the government for only P17.75 million.
He said the property is now worth roughly P1 billion.
The CA freeze order said at least three people accused of being "dummies" of Binay are directors of Meriras Realty as of 2013. They are Gerry Limlingan, Limlingan's wife Marguerite Lichnock, and Chong.
Five members of the Chong family - Imee, Kim Tung, Irene, Kimsfer and Irish - are also listed as majority stockholders of the corporation.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
