Home taxes, MRT-LRT rip off

CONSUMERS DEMAND!
Herman Tiu Laurel
10/31-11/6/2011

Quezon City Hall has raised the real estate taxes of homeowners by 20%, the city officials try to deceive the taxpayer saying its only 0.05% or P500 for every P100,000 assessed value; but the basic real estate taxes hover from 2 to 2.5% maximum, hence the 0.05% is 20% and up.

This is no small matter when Quezon City real estate prices can range from lows of P3,000 in low end districts to highs of P20,000/sq in New Manila and even P50,000/sqm along EDSA.

Never mind if everyone is as rich as the malls on EDSA, but what about the senior citizen-retirees living on fixed pensions in homes lived in for the past half-a-century and low-income earners who inherited homes from parents granted housing from the time of Quirino or Magsaysay.

They certainly will be foreclosed by City Hall eventually. Is the scheme to foreclose real estate to be privatized as in the previous administration?

A Facelift
Last week, BS Aquino III, a.k.a. PeNoy, announced the allocation of P6.5-billion for
the “facelift” of the MRT-LRT, including the purchase of new coaches.

This is all very well and nice for the commuting public and we welcome it; but as we know for certain the PeNoy administration is intent on privatizing the MRT-LRT operations which it has stated time and again, this will be again another subsidy for the future private owner and operator of the MRT-LRT (presumably Manny Pangilinan’s group again, which has already enjoyed billions in subsidy in its Meralco and Maynilad takeovers) from taxpayer money.

The only way this suspicion can be denied by the present administration then it has to declare unequivocally that with the P 6.5-B infusion for “facelift” the MRT-LRT will no longer be privatized ever. But that is absolutely not going to happen as this administration is nothing but a tool of the plundering “corporats” the whole World is up in arms against today.

Happening so Fast
Many have been taken aback by these issues: Engr. Obet Versola, second-generation Sikatuna resident and among the best informed of citizens: “I didn’t realize this real estate tax hike was coming, it all happened so fast.

“Suddenly it’s been signed by City Hall.”, Obet said. Citizens all over Metro-Manila should be concerned as it is a cue for others cities to follow, as Parañaque has also announced after QC that it will be raising real estate taxes.

“Quezon City has no basis for claiming lack of funds for P180-M yearly special budget for “socialized housing” when it’s supposed to have P6.5-B budget surplus from the Belmonte administration who’s lying, Belmonte or Herbert Bautista who says there’s no such surplus), and has answer COA’s exposé of 3,000 QC ghost employees costing P200-M a year.

“QC has an annual P2.7-M budget, including the mayor’s P500-M pork barrel (plus intelligence, contingency, donation and others hundreds of millions more) and counselors have P44-M each annually.

Cost of Privatization
The MRT-LRT is not losing money on its operations, i.e. on its overhead and other management and operational costs.

They are losing money from financial charges that is the result of the MRT financial and privatization scheme Fidel V. Ramos set up in collusion with the oligarchy groups Sobrepreñas, Ayala, Campos, Ramos and Augustines providing sovereign guarantees on profits based on overstated passenger loads and fare structures.

After taking their fill they cash their options and sold out to the foreign syndicate of Ashmore, Elliot Associates and Goldman Sachs (one of the culprits of 2008 Wall Street crash) which filed a suits against the Philippine government
that it withdrew only upon the latter acceding to pay out $ 800-M taken from DBP
and Landbank and which we have to pay interest and principal for – this is the loss they are constantly harping about.

BS Aquino III is hoodwinking the public with this P6.5-B MRT-LRT “facelift” without repudiating MRT-LRT privatization.

Corpo-Rats Colluding
What is clear in these two cases we are alerting the public to is the collusion between the corrupt global financial corporats like Goldman Sachs and company, the local oligarchs like the original MRT “investors” and the corrupt political bureaucracy both national and local.

This is no different from what the millions of “Occupy Wall Street” and now “Occupy the World” protesters from New York to Athens are marching and raging about. The only reason Filipinos have not started to show similar protest en masse is the decades of fruitless protests here that have led to the protest-fatigue.

But the low batt status will only last so long, the constant explanation and exposé of the abuses will recharge our people and crystallize the focus on the real enemy – the international financial mafia, the oligarchs and the corrupt political leaders.

Conversely, the answer to these new leadership to restore the primacy of the people’s welfare in governance over the rule of greed.

Throw Out the Greedy
Who are these leaders who will hold high the cause of the people?

Look around, who’s speaking out for the people on these issues.

Let’s encourage and support them to pick up the political cudgels.

Some of these people I can name are: Atty. Alan Paguia, who’s always spoken for justice for the people; in the QC real estate tax issue the tandem of Johnny Chang and Rod Kapunan; on the national economic issues the groups like KME (Kilusang Makabansang Ekonomiya); on the public utilities people like mang Naro Lualhati, former mayor of QC Jun Simon leading the QC-ecor, writer Butch Junia, and many others.

Let’s Occupy The Seats of Power and throw out the greedy.

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