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CEBU CITY, Philippines - The Cebu city government is watching with interest the legal dispute over the new pay-parking scheme adopted by the provincial government in the Capitol grounds.
Is the Capitol acting as a landowner?
“If they (the province) say that they collect fees because they are the landowner and not because they are a government entity then that becomes a questionable thing,” said Francisco “Bimbo” Fernandez, Cebu City Administrator.
He noted that no business permit has been applied for by the Capitol. Neither does the province pay real property tax to Cebu City.
A private firm, Mandaue Integrated Manpower Services Inc., is collecting the parking fees and issuing cash tickets and receipts from car owners and drivers, according to the petition filed against Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, the Provincial Board, and other Capitol officials.
The new system, which makes use of electronic cards, was implemented in September 11, the petition said.
The civil case for injunction and declaration of absolute nullity of collection of parking fees and installation of a surveillance camera was filed by the Cebu Lawyers for Unity and Brotherhood (Club) represented by lawyers Edgar Gica and Elias Espinoza.
Cebu City is not a party to the lawsuit.
If the Capitol would say that its collection of fees is proprietary in nature, which means the action is that of a private owner, the city government will check its records because, according to Fernandez, “records show that they don't.”
However, Fernandez said the city would not compel the province to file an application for a business permit or to pay realty taxes at this point with the case still pending in court.
“But the question is do they have the authority to do that (collect fees from car users). They don't have jurisdiction to do that because they are here in Cebu City and Cebu City is not part of the province,” Fernandez said.
“If they would continue collecting because they are the province, the city has nothing to do with it but the problem is if they say it is a government function, the lawyers would hit on that,” Fernandez said.
“But we are not a party to the case although we admit that we have an interest in it. Because if that is how they will argue (proprietary) then we will also argue that they need to pay us,” Fernandez said.
