Vice President Sara Duterte is being attacked for being a stockholder of Gencorp, which holds several Jollibee franchises, making it appear that she owns Jollibee itself.
It is legally false.
Let us make it clear, and not base it on the gossip of Partylist Representative Terry Ridon.
JTC Group of Companies Philippines, Inc. owns Gencorp. If Rep. Ridon would use his head instead of his tongue, he could easily Google the firm and discover that the ownership is like a family affair. The registered owners are: Jaime T. Cruz, businessman and founder of the JTC Group; Kimberly Justine Y. Cruz, who serves as president of Gencorp Industries; Ricci Evette L. Cruz; Nathan Zachary L. Cruz; and Gerlie S. Cruz.
Under Philippine law, a corporation has a separate and distinct juridical personality from its stockholders. Gencorp owns the franchise. Gencorp owns the store. Gencorp deals with Jollibee Foods Corporation.
That is the long and short of it.
A stockholder owns shares — not the corporation, not the franchise, not the brand. If one thinks of investing money that could earn better than the usual bank interest, a savvy investment manager will look for companies with stable and proven financial success.
Even a majority stockholder does not become the owner-operator of a franchised store. The income is corporate income. The liabilities are corporate liabilities.
Owning shares in Gencorp does not make one the owner of Jollibee, just as owning one share in PLDT, PT&T or Converge does not make one the owner of these firms.
The problem with Ridon and some members of the prosecution in the Senate trial of VP Sara Duterte is they have no evidence for impeachment, so they manufacture ownership.
That is not accountability. That is distortion.
By the way, some characters in government have declared they are going to ban Facebook in the country. Before they do that, consider these alternatives: WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, Signal, FaceTime, Google Meet.
This much I can suggest, but I cannot speak for the millennials who might resort to a Nepalese solution to keep their database and digital links working. The traditional libraries might still be there, but the books have become outdated. And there is a horde of “Marites” who will join the fray.
If that is not foreboding, consider this. The ruling majority Senator-judges in the Impeachment Court just came up with their own bastardized version on the voting threshhold for the conviction of VP Sara by bringing the Constitution-mandated 2/3 or 16 votes of ALL the Senators down to 13 of the members present. The Presiding Judge Chiz Escudero declared that the motion is only applicable to the case of VP Sara and proceeded to vote NO to the motion. Chiz declaration and his NO vote is akin to double edge sword that argued against the attempt to trifle with the Constitution and his stand on the impeachment charges against the Vice President.
The public outrage is adding up to the summer of discontent.
