A Quezon City government official says the dispute in the payment of real property taxes with the Metro Rail Transit Authority is still pending before the Supreme Court.
In an exclusive interview, city treasurer Edgar Villanueva said the city shall earn P2 billion should the High Court rule in favor of the city government.
Under the past administrations, the local government wanted the MRTA management to pay a huge amount of taxes for using the stretch of Epifanio delos Santos Avenue of MRT3.
It was the train management that filed a petition with the SC, he cited. “The case has dragged on for so many years,” he told the Manila Standard.
“One thing is very sure, that the case against the MRT3-EDSA is now in the hands of the SC for decision,” he said.
“We are hoping that we would win the case,” he added.
Meanwhile, Villanueva said the city government continues to tax billboards not only along EDSA but in the entire city.
“Groups of billboard operators have been paying taxes to us,” he noted.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. earlier named new officials of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and its attached agency, the MRT-3.
In a Facebook post on August 10, the DOTr announced that Jorjette Aquino has been appointed as Transportation Assistant Secretary for Railways.
Federico Canar Jr. and Oscar Bongon have also been tapped as general manager and operations director, respectively, of MRT-3.
Canar was a former Light Rail Transit Authority official.
Marcos first appointed Bongon as officer-in-charge of MRT-3 in July.
The three new appointees took oath before Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista, the DOTr said.
“DOTr Secretary Jaime J. Bautista presided over the swearing-in ceremony of Jorjette B. Aquino as the Assistant Secretary for Railways; Federico Canar Jr. as MRT-3 General Manager; and Engr. Oscar B. Bongon as MRT-3 Operations Director,” it said.
The DOTr also shared photos of the oath-taking of the three newly appointed officials.
Malacañang has yet to release the appointment papers of Aquino, Canar, and Bongon.