|
Friday, November 04, 2004
Ruiz steps up attack against Ouanos
By Rose O. Versoza
With Karlon N. Rama
CEBU CITY -- For someone who owns two franchises of a giant fastfood restaurant, it is hard to believe that Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano's son-in-law Nixon "Jojo" Dizon's income tax last year was only P17,231.15.
Rep. Nerissa Soon-Ruiz (Cebu, 6th district) said this was the information contained in the income tax return (ITR) Dizon filed with the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
Dizon, the mayor's consultant on police matters, was named the owner or franchisee of Jollibee outlets in Bogo and Carcar towns.
Ruiz, in a press conference in her residence in Barangay Casili, Mandaue City Wednesday, also said that even Dizon's parents, Nick and Shirley Ting, do not have that much money to pay for the franchises, which is said to cost about P20 million to P25 million each.
Ruiz based her claims on the information Dizon and the Tings stated in their ITR filed with the BIR for 2003.
2003 income
The congresswoman, who was furnished copies of the documents last Tuesday by her "sympathizers," said she also has documents showing the 2003 gross annual income of the Ouanos.
Based on Ruiz's papers, Ouano and his wife Linda had a gross compensation income of P312,695 and a business income of P500,200.
Their joint income tax is only P72,200.
Ouano's son Thadeo Jovito "Jonkie," managing director of Dizon's fastfood outlets, did not file any ITR last year, said Ruiz.
"Where did they get the money to buy a P25-million Jollibee franchise?" Ruiz said.
"If they say that they have other properties, Jollibee does not accept properties. It should be in cash. And the Ouanos did not sell their properties," she added.
Aside from paying the cost of the franchise, a franchisee is expected to spend more because one still has to put up the building and pay for the lot.
File charges
Ruiz is determined to file a plunder case and a complaint calling for a lifestyle check against Ouano on Monday, unless he can "prove my figures wrong."
Jonkie, speaking in behalf of his father, said this is just Ruiz's way of diverting the issue on why she did not declare her house and lot in Casili in her statement of assets and liabilities (SAL).
"If she is that confident in her figures, why wait for Monday? File it tomorrow. We'll answer her in the proper forum," Jonkie told reporters Wednesday.
Jonkie refused to confirm the veracity of the figures. Instead, he challenged Ruiz to file a case in the proper forum.
"Maybe it's just for media mileage," Jonkie said.
Because the matter has been raised before Malacaņang, the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas will not get involved, for now, in the controversy.
The same cannot be said for Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano's mansion in Barangay Opao.
An ombudsman source said Ouano is among those officials being subjected to Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo's lifestyle check.
Ombudsman Director Virginia Santiago refused to confirm the information.
Based on Ouano's statement of assets and liabilities, the mayor's net worth is some P56.55 million.
The bulk of his possession is real properties in Opao, which he acquired in cash from 1963 to 1997. The current value of the properties reaches some P55.28 million.
Jonkie had denied that the Ouano family owns the fastfood outlets and instead named Dizon, husband of his elder sister Emmarie Dolores "Lollipop."
The funds, though, were not entirely provided by Dizon as he reportedly had an internal funding arrangement with his family and a US-based family friend.
If this is so, Ruiz wondered why the documents she has only show that Nick and Shirley earned less than P1 million each.
Nick himself, who is engaged in the buy-and-sell business, only had a gross income of P679,689 and an income tax of P44,399, while Shirley, who is into the pawnshop and jewelry business, had a gross income of P713,331 and an income tax of P33,918.
But NS Royal Pension, which the Tings own, had a gross income of P3,795,467 and an income tax of P41,823, she said.
Dragged
Ruiz said she pitied the Tings, who are private individuals, for having been dragged into this but she had to because the Ouanos had used them to hide their financial interests.
"Either the Tings are hiding their wealth and are not paying taxes or somebody is telling a lie," said Ruiz.
Although it might appear like she is taking revenge for the "expose" that was made on her house in Casili, Ruiz said she does not mean it to be so.
"It's for justice for the people of Mandaue," she said.
She was even thankful to urban poor leader Eglyrina Caballero for making an issue out of her house because people were moved into sympathizing with her and provided her with documents against the Ouanos.
She also admitted there had been several calls for a lifestyle check on the Ouanos but, because of the Mandauehanon's "peace-loving" nature, no one had formally come up with a complaint against them.
This time, though, Ruiz is committed to file a plunder case against Ouano and push for a lifestyle check on him and his family.
She will be leaving for Sydney, Australia today to attend a meeting of the Kampi party but she will be back on Monday to see this issue through.
(November 4, 2004 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
|
|
[return to top]
[home]
|
|
Crisis team to handle Pinoy kidnapping in Iraq