Las Piñas City councilor Mark Anthony Santos files his certificate of candidacy, October 6, 2024. Raphael Bosano, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — Incumbent Las Piñas City councilor Mark Anthony Santos filed his Certificate of Candidacy for a congressional seat in the city’s lone district on Sunday.

He likens his bid for Congress to the battle of David and Goliath as he is expected to run against billionaire and Senator Cynthia Villar. While he describes his relationship with Villar as “civil”, having been part of the Nacionalista Party in previous elections, Santos says it is time to end the Villar dynasty in Las Piñas.

Along with his COC, he brought with him a copy of a report from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism which showed five Villar companies as delinquent tax payers.

READ: Camille Villar files candidacy for senator 

“Kung nagawa po nila ito, wala po silang moral authority to lead our city. Unang-una po, kailangan ng honesty, integrity, and respect para sa mga tao po,” he said.

(If they were able to do this, they have no moral authority to lead our city. What we need is honesty, integrity and respect for the people.)

“Hindi ko po kinukurot ang mga kandidato. Hindi ko po minumura ang mga civil servants sa senate hearing. Ako po ay ordinaryo lang na taga Las Piñas, ipaglalaban ko po ang mga karapatan ng mga taga Las Piñas.”

(I don’t pinch other candidates. I don’t berate civil servants in senate hearings. I am an ordinary citizen of Las Piñas and I will fight for their right.)

Among his priorities for the city are the steady flow of investments and in-city relocation. He also supports the reclamation project saying that more than increasing the risk of flooding, it will help generate employment and increase income for the city.

READ: Villar fumes over alleged monopoly of ASF vaccine supplier

A statement from the legal team of Brittany Corporation explains that the issue on real property tax “arose from the erroneous Statements of Accounts (SOAs) issued by the City of Las Piñas alleging unpaid realty taxes on some of the real properties owned by Brittany Corporation and the Villar Sipag at Tiyaga Foundation Inc.”

It said that some of the SOAs contained errors including the name of taxpayers; estimated market value of the properties where the taxes being assessed were based; assessment of the tax on the lot owned by Brittany Corp that was converted into a public road; and tax of the Mella Hotel that being charged charged to the Villar Foundation even if the said hotel is owned by another corporate entity.

“The same is true for some commercial structures in Global South area that have been mistakenly issued assessments under “Villar Sipag Center” but there is no corporate entity that is registered under such name and the said properties are actually owned by other corporations. We have communicated the above errors to the City Assessor and the City Treasurer of Las Piñas and we requested the said offices to rectify their records and thereafter furnish us the correct real property tax computations,” the statement read.

It also clarified that they have paid a total P151.8 which is a full settlement of real property taxes back in November 2023 which, they say, included advance payments for the real property taxes for the following year.

READ: Cynthia Villar eyes running for mayor or congressman

“The Office of the City Treasurer of Las Piñas issued the corresponding Tax Clearances to Brittany Corporation and the Villar foundation on December 1, 2023.The real property tax being imposed on Mella Hotel building is grossly excessive and was based on an erroneous estimate of the market value so we sought the correction thereof.”

Last March, they claimed that City Treasurer issued another SOA which reflected the correct amount. The team once again raised some issues and concerns which remain unresolved even at present.

Three days prior the conclusion of the filing of COC’s for the 2025 midterm elections, Villar has yet to file her own COC.