Thursday, October 09, 2008 (Philippines)

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña and wife Margot, at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, prepare to leave for their trip to the U.S. where the mayor will seek treatment for a mass found in his urinary bladder.(Sun.star photo/Allan Cuizon) CEBU City Hall lawyers are now thinking of taking “drastic” actions against schools and hospitals that refuse to pay business taxes, after a judge dismissed the case they filed against the City Government. Acting City Attorney Rodolfo Golez confirmed the case filed by the schools and hospitals was dismissed by Judge Generosa Labra when their lawyers failed to attend the pre-trial hearing yesterday. “So now we can collect the taxes they owe the City. We have given them many chances to discuss with city officials and agree on how they can settle their tax liabilities but it seems that the lawyer of one of the schools is bent on pushing their case,” he told Sun.Star Cebu. [full story]