rappler.com-Jan 18
The Philippines’ Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) on Wednesday, January 18, acquitted Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and Rappler Holdings Corporation (RHC) of four charges of tax evasion that were filed in 2018 by the previous Duterte government. The CTA 1st Division decided to acquit Ressa and RHC, Rappler’s holding company, in the Duterte government’s charge that it evaded tax payments when it raised capital through its partnership with foreign investors North Base Media and Omidyar Network. This involved the issuance to the two entities of Philippine Depositary Receipts or PDRs, financial instruments commonly used even among media companies like ABS-CBN and GMA Network. The victory ends more than four years of trial of a case filed in March 2018, two months after the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission issued a closure order against Rappler on the basis of the Duterte government’s charge that it broke the law by being foreign-owned. Rappler is a 100% Filipino company, a point asserted by the company in its appeal of the SEC order at the Court of Appeals (CA). An emotional Ressa said after the verdict: “Today, facts win, truth wins, justice wins,” calling for freedom for all other jailed journalists like Frenchie Mae Cumpio. “The Government’s targeted attack and investigations against Rappler, Inc.’s parent company, Accused Rappler Holdings Corporation and RHC’s President Maria Ressa, presents a clear example of how the law can be bent to the point that it is broken,” said Rappler’s memorandum. Read more at: https://www.rappler.com/nation/philippine-tax-court-clears-nobel-laureate-maria-ressa-rappler-of-4-cases/
