. Republished with permission.
Aguilar endorsed the companies’ requests to the city council, headed by her daughter, Vice Mayor Aguilar-Nery. The mayor said the companies needed to recover from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Members of the Villar family are either shareholders, officers, or simultaneously hold both positions in the companies and business entities that own the properties.
The summary shows 11 other Brittany properties not included in the letters obtained by PCIJ owing the city another P10.4 million. “The perceived issue is well within the competence of the management team of these corporate entities and I do not interfere nor involve myself in these business concerns. Nonetheless, I will refer the matter to the senior officers of these corporations, for their appropriate action,” she said.
The couple’s eldest son Manuel Paolo, one of the incorporators of the company, is listed as a 0.01% shareholder. Mark previously served as managing director while Camille is a member of the board and managing director of the commercial division. Real property taxes for the fast-food restaurant have not been paid since 2015. The taxes for the drug store, which opened in mid-2016, remained unpaid since 2017 or practically for the most part of its operations. It was not clear if the restaurant and the pharmacy were only renters or were operated by the company.
It’s a non-stock, non-profit organization established by the Villar couple in 1992. Its SEC records show Villar Jr., Cynthia, and children Manuel Paolo and Camille as incorporators. Its website also identifies Villar Jr. as chair, Cynthia as managing director, and Mark as secretary and treasurer. Aguilar is the wife of the late Vergel “Nene” Aguilar, Cynthia’s brother who served as city mayor for 18 years. Aguilar-Nery is one of their daughters.
Three months later, on March 21, 2023, Aguilar wrote a letter to Aguilar-Nery to grant tax amnesty on penalties incurred by local residents and businesses, including the Villar companies. On March 24, the city mayor, again through the administrator, officially endorsed the requests of the Villar companies and other delinquent taxpayers to the city council. The council calendared the matter on March 27 and continues to deliberate on the matter to date.
The Villars have maintained that their businesses did not benefit from their positions in government.The city treasurer’s office sent notices to the top delinquent taxpayers last year amid declining tax collection and city income during the pandemic. The Local Government Code allows the collection of local taxes, say for real properties, to reduce local government units’ dependence on the Internal Revenue Allotment and increase funding for social services and public infrastructure.Taxes redistribute wealth in a bid to reduce inequality, said former COA officer in charge Heidi Mendoza, who spoke to PCIJ about the importance of LGUs collecting taxes properly.
In comparison, eight Metro Manila LGUs have less than 2% poverty incidence among families. These are Manila, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Quezon City, Valenzuela, San Juan, Makati, and Muntinlupa.A percentage of the taxes collected from real estate properties are supposed to go to the Special Education Fund , which is allocated to the local school board for the operation and maintenance of public schools in the city.