Palace: Arlegui mansion to be returned to owners in good condition

As a sign of “good faith," the government will return the Arlegui mansion near Malacañang in good condition, following a court ruling that the mansion was not government property after all. Outgoing Presidential Management Staff head Elena Bautista-Horn said Saturday this is the least the government can do for the family that the court deemed the real owners of the house. “It’s all a sign of good faith na pagbalik sa may-ari nasa maayos na condition (It’s a sign of good faith that when we return the mansion to the real owners, it will be in good condition)," she said on government-run dzRB radio. She said the government had used the mansion for several decades, unaware that it was not government property in the first place. Earlier, Bautista-Horn said government owes the owners of the mansion some P73 million, whether or not the incoming Aquino government will use the mansion. Earlier, the Supreme Court declared the Laperal family the rightful owners of the Arlegui property inside the Malacañang compound. Under a compromise agreement, government is allowed lease the 1,400-square meter property for P20,000 a month until June 30. On the other hand, President-elect Benigno Simeon Aquino III had said he is not keen on using the Arlegui mansion either as his residence or as his office. His late mother former President Corazon Aquino and her immediate successor Fidel Ramos had used the Arlegui mansion as official residence. — LBG, GMANews.TV