By Robert B. Roque Jr.
A couple of years ago, I shared a table at ThePhilBizNews’s Embassy Night with a soft-spoken lawyer introduced to me by a good friend.
Based in Mindanao, Atty. Danilo Balucos carried this elegant demeanor so opposite to that of former prosecutor-turned-mayor and president, Rodrigo Duterte, that I never would have made him out as a lawyer from Davao.
His good traits started to unfold as the socials drew deeper into the night. Atty. Danny happened to offer a big part of himself to the academe, to journalists in the provinces, to Catholic parochial causes, to landmark appeals against laws that are a potential threat to Filipinos, among others.
Then at one point, it was revealed that during preparations for the presidential elections in 2016, his services were solicited by former Vice President Jojo Binay’s campaign team.
Though lacking a formal written contract, Atty. Danny’s hands-on engagement with Team Binay was rooted in service delivered under the principle of quantum meruit.
As I gathered, this arrangement is commonly applied and bound in legal context that: a person should be compensated for the value of services rendered, even in the absence of a formal contract, provided that the services were requested or accepted by the other party — in this case by VP Binay’s team.
But woe as I learned this weekend, two years after our meeting, that our good lawyer in this story was never compensated.
For a family of lawyers, public servants, and exemplars of good governance themselves, I must say that the Binays must be the first to understand the weight of their moral and legal obligations to Atty. Danny.
While this matter is about money, I’m absolutely certain my lawyer-friend is hurting not because of it entirely. There were others in Binay’s close circle at that time who knew his contributions to the campaign team, among them, lawyers Jeff Zarate and Wendel Avisado; Fred Pontillo, and Pikot Buenafe.
It appears that Atty. Danny has made repeated attempts to seek resolution through professional channels, including direct communications to Jojo Binay, the Office of the Vice President (OVP), the offices of his daughters Senator Nancy Binay and Makati Mayor Abby Binay, and a friend of mine in the Lions Club, among others. But our attorney’s efforts have been met with cold silence.
Even a face-to-face opportunity at a public rally of 1Sambayan failed to materialize due to Binay’s absence. Firing Line can only say that the former VP must, in his right mind, realize that it is not just to allow a once loyal supporter of his to walk away empty-handed.
After all, the benefits gained by Binay from Atty. Danny’s services cannot be denied. The bottom line here is integrity and accountability — principles the Binays themselves champion in their political platforms. And hopefully, settling this attorney’s claim isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s the Binay thing to do.
* * *
SHORT BURSTS. For comments or reactions, email firingline@ymail.com or tweet @Side_View via X. Read current and past issues of this column at http://www.thephilbiznews.com
