Muntinlupa to get share of Skyway/PNCC toll fees

Muntinlupa City is set to get a share of the profits generated by the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) Skyway System once a measure authored by the City’s lawmakers pushes through.

The proposed ordinance requires the Skyway Corporation /Philippine National Construction Corporation (PNCC) consortium to pay the City a business tax of 50 percent of 1 percent based on total receipts.

“We believe it’s about time that PNCC pay the City what the people deserve,” Mayor Jaime R. Fresnedi said. “There is enough legal basis for us to act on this.”

The proposed measure likewise will require Skyway-PNCC venture to secure a Mayor’s Permit from the City Government and to pay the necessary fees for their toll facilities located within the jurisdiction of the City.

The South Metro Manila Skyway Project is operated by the Skyway O & M Corporation (SOMCO), the entity designated by the Toll Regulatory Board to operate the Skyway. It spans Buendia in the north and Alabang in the South.

The Skyway runs along barangays Sucat, Buli, Cupang, and Alabang while the length of the SLEX runs from Sucat all the way to the provincial boundary at Tunasan for a total length of about 10 kilometers.

Should the proposed ordinance be approved and put into effect, the taxes and fees covering this span of road could provide Muntinlupa a much-needed boost in its coffers, which have been largely depleted due to apparent fiscal mismanagement by the previous administration.

Muntinlupa is faced with a staggering debt of more than P1.5billion acquired by the previous regime and is expected to pay this until the year 2019, hampering the flow of services.

Fresnedi believes this measure can provide the City Government the revenue it needs to deliver at least the very basic of services to the people. “It’s not that we want road users to suffer with increased tolls. We just want to help Muntinlupeños and taxing the Skyway System is a legal measure that is afforded to us by the law.”