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Thursday, September 22, 2005
Councilor wants 4 bars checked
The Cebu City Council wants the tax declaration and financial records of at least four nightclubs reviewed on suspicion that they have been underpaying their taxes to the City Government.
In a privilege speech yesterday, Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera said there is a problem not only in the enforcement of ordinances covering nightclubs, but in tax ordinances as well.
Pesquera raised the matter after she learned from the City Anti-Indecency Board (Caib) yesterday morning that some nightclubs declared a capital investment of only P50,000.
“I believe establishments like these have bigger capital investment and are earning more than what they declared. We should look into this to protect the interest of the City,” she told the Council during the regular session yesterday afternoon.
Books
Pesquera specifically mentioned Volvo, Thunderdome, Black Hole and Love City as the ones that should be inspected.
The City Council then approved a resolution requesting the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) to inspect the books of the four establishments and assess the correct taxes they are supposed to pay.
The CTO was also asked to provide the City Council copies of the lease contracts, Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Trade and Industry registration papers. The CTO has until Sept. 28 to submit a report.
Vice Mayor Michael Rama added that considering the nature of their business, nightclubs need a big capital “and therefore, much more taxes should have been collected.”
Extra service
During the executive session, Pesquera said Caib still needs to strengthen their campaign against nightclubs, where nude dancers reportedly provide extra service to their clients.
Caib members were also criticized for being remiss in their duties.
Councilor Edgardo Labella, however, said he personally believes Caib has done its job in ridding the city of indecent elements.
“I think by and large, Caib has done its job to a great extent. As we can see, there are only a few of these establishments left in the city as some of them have already transferred to neighboring cities," he said. (LCR)
(September 22, 2005 issue)
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