Concert organizer belittles Pesina
The event organizer of the recent Leah Salonga concert belittled the members of the committee on ways and means of the Sangguniang Panlungsod, specifically its chair Councilor Antonio Pesina, for being unable to correctly classify the kind of concerts which are taxable.
Event organizer Jane Javellana said Pesina, being a lawyer, has limited knowledge about the various classifications of music.
Javellana, earlier filed a motion for reconsideration against the report of Pesina's committee denying the exemption from amusement tax of the Leah Salonga concert.
Javellana insisted that the concert should be exempted from paying amusement tax because it was a classical concert not pop as determined by Pesina's committee.
In yesterday's press conference, Javellana was accompanied by her two lawyers and Arne Lubasan, the director of the university choir of the University of San Agustin (Troubadours). They presented Lubasan to drive their pleas that the Ms. Salonga's concert last January 19, 2008 was classical and not pop.
The organizer and her pool of lawyers described the committee report as having "negligible shortcomings." They want an exhaustive deliberations from the members of the committee before coming up with final decision.
The organizer is willing to pay the prescribed amusement tax provided their part is also heard by the committee on ways and means.
If the committee decides to impose the 30 percent amusement tax, the event organizer will take administrative remedies. Meanwhile, the event organizer was adviced by her lawyers not to accept or sign any collection documents regarding the concert pending the final committee report and resolution of the motion for reconsideration they filed before the committee.
Last week, the City Treasurer's Office already sent a collection letter to the organizer asking for some P1,135,000 amusement tax. Javellana refused to accept the letter saying their were erroneous details in her address. Her counsels told her there is no need to immediately pay the tax pending the resolution of their motion for reconsideration.