Tuesday, January 25, 2011

GREAT AMERICAN CIRCUS FOLLOW-UP STORY

Circus to pay amusement tax
Sunday, January 23, 2011
CEBU CITY (Phillipines) -- The producer of "The Great American Circus" said he will pay its amusement tax at the Cebu City Hall.
Ericson Uy said he is willing to pay but wants first to sit down with City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva to clarify the amount due.
In an interview with Sun.Star Cebu, Uy believes their tax due is not P1.7 million as Oliva claimed."Naa man mi mga (we have) ex-deals with other companies, even with City Hall, and ex-deals are not considered ticket sales," he said.Uy said he called a stop payment order to the Chinatrust Bank check (not Chinabank as earlier reported) to hold the check he issued to City Hall worth P1.2 million, but not because he does not want to pay their tax due.Uy said the check is supposed to be just a "guarantee" payment but the City Treasurer's Office (CTO) allegedly insisted on depositing it."The check I gave to them is a guarantee fee, unya ila man nuon i-deposit (but they deposited it).
So I called them, nganong ing-ana kay di man na mao ilang gibuhat unya ingon sila nga di na kuno pwede ma-hold kay ready na ang tseke for pick up sa bangko (they said the check is ready for pickup by the bank. That's why I ordered a stop payment)," he said.But Oliva said that the check issued by Uy is not a guarantee fee."It was not a guarantee fee. It was a 50 percent down payment bisan tan-awon pa nimo sa among mga forms (you can check the forms)," she said.
Since it is a payment, Oliva said the City will have it deposited in the bank. But with the stop payment order issued, Oliva said she feels Uy has really no intention to pay.She said that right after the show, the chief of amusement tax was told by Uy that he will not pay because of an exemption.
"And to think we didn't even receive the resolution granting them a reduction of the amusement tax. But still, we only billed them 10 percent of their sales," she said.
Oliva said it was Councilor Richard Osmeña who sponsored the resolution granting the circus an amusement tax reduction. Sun.Star Cebu tried to call Osmeña but failed to reach him.Uy is scheduled to meet with Mayor Michael Rama today, Monday.

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