DAGUPAN CITY, (PNA) — Mayor Belen Fernandez has ordered the City Administrator and Legal Officer to prepare a draft ordinance to be submitted to the Sangguniang Panlungsod seeking to grant amnesty to delinquent real property taxpayers.
The amnesty seeks to provide the condonation of interest, penalties and surcharges imposed on delinquent property owners provided they pay the principal.
This as the office of City Treasurer Romelita Alcantara is set to hold sometime in October a public auction on delinquent properties whose owners have not paid their real property taxes consecutively for several years.
Alcantara said she already sent notices of levy to these property owners which is an indication that the city is now about to auction these properties.
But Fernandez is reluctant to approve the auction of these properties till after she talks personally to the concerned property owners in order to convince them to pay the taxes due them.
Besides, auctioning these properties will be opposed her promise to the people to help them own lands where they can build their houses.
She stressed that although the city is in need of cash, she will not rush into auctioning delinquent properties as it pains her to see property owners losing their lots where their houses are located at the time when they have no money
“We know that they have no money to pay their taxes. What happens to them when we get away their lands where their houses were built? Where will they go now?” she said.
She found out that these lots were even inherited by present owners from their parents and forefathers and losing these through public auction only for the city to recover few thousands of pesos of taxes that they had not paid would be too hurting to them.
Thus the need for the amnesty so that they will pay only the principal amount, minus the interest and penalties.
At the same time, Fernandez ordered Alcantara to report to her next week the list of delinquent properties auctioned by the previous administration and the persons who bought these properties including the list of properties she proposed to be auctioned.
“I understand, some properties were auctioned for just a few thousand pesos, which only represented the tax due, interest and penalties imposed on the owners when in fact these properties are valued at millions of pesos.
She cited a case in point a 672-square meter lot in Barangay Tambac owned by the family of Flordeliz Sabolboro Soriano which was auctioned in December 2010 only for P10,612 just for the city to recover the taxes due property for 12 years.
This lot has sentimental value to Soriano’s family as this was inherited by them from their parents. But the redemption for auctioned property is only up to one year.