‘Film fest beneficiaries got P29M from 2010 to 2012’

THE METRO Manila Film Festival (MMFF) yesterday denied the allegation that it shortchanged beneficiaries of P11.2 million in amusement tax collections from 2010 to 2012.

In a statement, MMFF spokesperson Marichu Maceda belied the accusation of the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP) in a case it filed recently in a Quezon City court that its remittances to various beneficiaries fell short of their expected shares.

“We have the records to explain where the funds of the MMFF go, including the amusement tax allocations given to the beneficiaries. These documents speak for themselves and clearly indicate that there was no fund misuse as alleged by FAP,” Maceda added.

Citing the MMFF’s 2010 to 2012 statement of receipts and disbursements, she said a total of P29.525 million was released to five beneficiary-agencies during the period—P9.325 million in 2010, P9.7 million in 2011 and P10.5million in 2012.

According to her, in accordance with a 2010 directive from the Office of the President, 50 percent of the amusement tax proceeds went to Movie Workers Welfare Foundation Inc., 20 percent to FAP, 20 percent to the Motion Picture AntiPiracy Council, 5 percent to the Optical Media Board and 5 percent to the Film Development Council of the Philippines.

Maceda explained that the MMFF executive committee was mandated to remit to the beneficiaries the net proceeds of the amusement tax collections “after deducting all its operational and incidental expenses.”

She noted that a large part of the MMFF’s expenses went to the prizes and awards given to filmmakers, which totaled P10.794 million from 2010 to 2012. In addition, the MMFF donated money for the rebuilding of classrooms in Mindanao in the wake of Typhoons “Sendong” and “Pablo.”

Maceda said the MMF Fearned gross revenues of P540.508 million in 2010, P636.792 million in 2011 and P767 million in 2012. She explained, however, that the MMFF collected only amusement taxes waived and donated by the 17 Metro local government units during the annual film festival.

Based on the case filed recently by FAP in a Quezon City court, the MMFF executive committee remitted just P11.2 million of the P15.73 million in amusement taxes it collected during the 2010 film fest, followed by P11 million of P12.27 million the following year, and P11 million of the P16.41 million in 2012.

This was the second case filed by FAP against the MMFF, whom it also earlier accused of shortchanging beneficiaries of over P80 million in amusement tax collections from 2002 to 2008.

Meanwhile, the MMFF questioned the motives of FAP director general Leo Martinez in filing the case, quoting a letter sent by the actor’s former project partner.

According to Revor Lasay, national chair of Sectoral AntiPoverty Movement, his team has yet to be paid after Martinez hired them in 2011 to revive the “Doon Po sa Amin” film awards, which were eventually scrapped due to lack of funding.

“I feel the issue here is not really the welfare of the movie workers as he proudly claimed but plainly money and the huge amount of money from the record-breaking earnings of the... film fest,” Lasay said.