Schools owe city P266 million in taxes

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said he is determined to collect the unpaid taxes of the seven proprietary schools and hospitals in the city. The amount may well exceed P266 million.

The City Treasurer’s Office has already sent the final demand letter to Cebu Doctors’ Hospital and Cebu Doctors’ University last week for their unpaid business taxes.

Based on CTO’s record, CDH has unpaid business taxes and penalties worth P81,454,234.02 from 2000 to 2004, while CDU has P36,247,054.31 from 2000 to 2008.

CDH and CDU have been given only until Friday to settle their obligations so that the city will not be forced to issue a certificate of delinquency and warrant of levy.

Osmeña said that they are tired of the “back and forth” negotiations with the proprietary schools and hospitals.

The mayor said he is even looking forward to the sale of the properties and garnishment of funds in the banks of these proprietary schools and hospitals.

“We’re going to sell all their properties and we are going to garnish their funds in the bank, something like that, we let our lawyers handle that,” Osmeña said.

In 2007, CDH and CDU together with Southwestern University, Sacred Heart Hospital, Cebu Institute of Technology, Cebu North General Hospital, and Velez General Hospital filed a civil case against the city, asking the court to declare the city’s amended tax ordinance null and void.

The ordinance reclassifies proprietary schools and hospitals as service-oriented and specifically identifies them as taxable industries.

Osmeña said that after CDH and CDU, the other proprietary schools and hospitals will also be served a final demand letter for their unpaid dues.

“I’d rather get their money in the bank then we will give them basic services after we collect the money, maybe we might even own Cebu Doctors,” Osmeña said.

Meanwhile, City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva said that they may also serve the final demand letter today to University of Cebu, SWU and SHH.

UC, although it did not file a case against the city, has unpaid taxes worth P91,751,316.66 in its Sanciangko campus from 2000 to 2008 and P15,583,717.79 in its Banilad campus from 2000 until 2008.

Meanwhile, SHH has P6,867,049.39 in unpaid taxes to the city from 2000 to 2007 and SWU has P34,511,957.42 from 2000 to 2007.

Oliva added that they are still verifying their records about the unpaid business taxes and penalties of the other proprietary schools and hospitals and they will also serve them final demand letter soon. — Elly Bolonos/BRP   (FREEMAN NEWS)