Pasay City Raises Issues on Dogs and Bicycle Taxes
Pasay residents and whole of Manila reacted on the recent City Ordinances implemented by Pasay City: taxation for dogs and bicycle owners!
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| Pasay City Ordinance: Taxes for Dogs, Bikes |
Residents who own “domesticated dog found in your household” must pay P20 per dog. Those who owned bicycles “powered by the feet” and “for private use within the city of Pasay” must pay P30 per unit. Pasay City Mayor Calixto said the taxes were enacted in 1999 during the term of Mayor Jovito Claudio.
The bicycle tax would be used to finance the cost of license plates, while the dog tax would be used to bankroll the operations of the city registry for dogs and campaigns for canine well-being such as providing antirabies shots.
And now, Pasay mayor is asking its city council to scrap the city ordinance. Please be strict on your guidelines before embarking on a new law or else, people's voice will bark at you guys just as what they/ we did through social media and other forms of complaint!
What a political move since 2013 Electoral Campaign is on the rise, politicians are trying to pull-out doughs from the people who are trying to save energy by riding bicycles and pet lovers. Instead of the local government reaching out to their constituents by initiating an advocacy project, say like a bicycle campaign or a giving free dog vaccination annually.
This was the same campaign in our village (in Quezon City) and the whole Barangay, has been adopting wherein Councilors (I will not mention names) set up a project for dogs to received a FREE anti-rabies vaccination. Rich and poor both have access on the said projects.
The real issue should be raise for all LGUs:
- The proper handling of pets - irresponsible dog owners. Don't let your dog poop and pee anywhere they pleased and leave behind litters, not to mention health hazards.
- How to minimize astray dogs (askals) around the streets causing possible dangers of dog bites
- Support NGO groups like PAWS to have more fundings for center operation
- Really, if a dog is left without its owner - it may cause problem but a bicycle left and parked alone can do no harm, what's the fuzz with the private bike owners? I mean I bought my two year old kid a bike with a balancer, is that subjected to tax? I even payed e-VAT upon purchase of the unit, where will the VAT goes? To the local government for sure.
- Before imposing tax on bike “powered by the feet”, consider setting up a safe bicycle lane for everyone. It just goes to show, this is where our taxes went. :) And don't label the project as (for example) "A project by HB." I mean hello did you spent a dime on that project? It's the community's taxes, where it should be.
Don't they have (the Pasay City) enough funds to allocate the needs? Pasay has the airport, mall of asia, 5-star hotels, amusement themed parks, etc. A project like that would not cost them big time! Why shoulder it from the community? Time to wake up people, think clearly before you vote for your next leader!
What about the animals in Cartimar? :) Lame ordinance, priceless idea!
