Hold the planned levy, mayor!

The other day, as there were in few times in the past, a news story was published about the demand of the city government for private schools and hospitals to pay certain taxes to the city at the threat of levy and eventual public auction in case of their failure to come across. This write up today is not a brief for them. It is not even an attempt because these organizations have, at their engagement, brilliant lawyers to defend their cause and learned publicists who can very ably articulate their position to the public, if needed.

But, true to the off tangent nature of this column, I offer a simple observation for the consideration of His Honor, Cebu City Mayor Tomas R. Osmeña.

At the outset, let me state what is, thus far, clear. The taxing aspect of the situation is now subject of litigation. However the court decides, I expect that the matter will still be elevated to the Supreme Court. There are significant constitutional issues that have to be tackled. It is perhaps prudent that the parties to the case, like the city and the private institutions, hold in abeyance any action until the case is resolved with finality.

Cebu City happens to be the situs of very well respected universities in this part of the world. The professionals graduating from their among students virtually take the handle of leading corporations, here and abroad. In relation to the issue at hand, such schools as the Cebu Doctors' University, the Cebu Velez College (its medical school being the Cebu Institute of Medicine), and the Southwestern University (which owns the Sacred Heart Hospital) rank among the more notable institutions of learning in the country. Their hospitals also compare with the best there is.

It must be admitted that the presence alone of these institutions brings unimaginable and certainly unquantifiable benefits to our city. They provide the kind of service the city government cannot hope to give. For one, there is no tertiary school maintained by the city that can approximate what these schools offer. The city's school of nursing, the only one that can be considered as a college offering, is, to compare, just about the size of a small department of say CDU. While it may be run well, it may have already reached its peak level.

Another point. The honorable mayor has, rightly or wrongly, threatened to close the Cebu City Medical Center. If we examine carefully his rationale, we can only grapple with the obvious. He feels the city facility is incapable of rendering the kind of hospital services needed by its constituency. By hinting of selling it to the private sector, he only strengthens the position that the city itself cannot efficiently operate the hospital.

Suppose, the owners of these schools and hospitals, which the city mayor wants to tax, feel like human beings that they, too, are and do not look at the purely legal issue. Suppose further that in the heat of their emotions, they conclude that they are unwanted by the city. Suppose furthermore that, instead of letting the city take over their facilities, thru public auction, as announced by the mayor, they rethink their operational presence in our city and move somewhere else.

I shudder at the kind of void that may be created. How many universities will have left our city, assuming they continue operating? They carry with them our students, teachers and the businesses that revolve around them. What about the hospitals?

If the city awaits for the resolution of the case, rather than force the matter of collecting tax, it will reap all possible advantages. I am sure the decision will be viewed with less emotion and if the courts agree with the taxing position of the city, the private schools and hospitals concerned may pay taxes willingly. On the other hand, if the courts of law decide that the kind of tax imposed by the city does not have a legal leg to stand on, there is no much damage suffered by these institutions which the city has to restore.

How about it, mayor?

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