Lawyer Sues Hotel Over Senior Citizen Discount

●”This is not only for me but I am doing this for all the senior citizens up there,” lawyer said.

A Cebuano lawyer wants an owner of a hotel in Bacolod City punish for allegedly not granting him and a companion of discounts in their hotel bills as senior citizens.

Attorney Paul Alcazaren filed the criminal case (Criminal Case No. 12-07-22696) against one Orville U. Ong of Goldenfield Kundotel in Singcang, Bacolod City along with one of the hotel’s staff and a Jane Doe, since he, along with his friend, Eric Gadiana, were not granted the 20% discount which they deserved under Republic Act 7432 as amended by R.A. 9994, otherwise known as the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.

“This is not only for me but I am doing this for all the senior citizens up there whose rights and benefits as mandated by the senior citizens law were ignored. I also would like to teach a lesson the establishments, that there is that law that they have to abide,” Alcazaren, 64, incidentally also a collector of customs assigned at the Port of Cebu told MetroCebu News (MCN) in an exclusive interview.

Alcazaren provided MCN machine copies of his pieces of evidence relative to the case, his senior citizen’s ID which was certified by Argao municipal Mayor Edsel Galeos and the Office of Senior Citizen’s Affairs of the town Vidal Villamor, Jr., the hotel billing which reflected they were not given discounts, among others. Alcazaren said he presented the identification card to avail of the 20 percent special discounts and VAT exemption provided under the said law.

Asked why the criminal case was just filed recently when the incident was already more than three years ago, Atty. Ireneo Morales, the legal counsel of Alcazaren explained the case underwent “judicial mediation” earlier but did not arrived to a settlement.

On the advise of Morales and a collaborating lawyer, Atty. Benjamin Bongon, Alcazaren pursued the case for the “sake of other senior citizens and for the erring establishments to be taught a lesson,”.

Morales revealed his client felt insulted when instead of arriving at a settlement, Ong, allegedly offered a mere,”one day free-accommodation” to compensate for what had happened.

“My client was really challenged, we view the one day free stay accommodation offer as an insult if not disrespect. My client apart from being a lawyer who knows the law is also a government official. He deserved respect,” Morales earlier told this writer.

Alcazaren used to be the Collector of Customs of Mactan, overseeing the Mactan International Airport and the importing firms within the Mactan area. He is now the Deputy Collector for Operations at the Port of Cebu, considered the number-two man in the said government office.

The customs official executed a five-page judicial affidavit dated May 12, 2014, stating among others, ” I felt offended and disrespected and my person as a Senior Citizen given by the law with some privileges was violated.”

Alcazaren, who is also a member of the Freemasons, said the action has become his advocacy for senior citizens like him.

“This is now sort of advocacy for me, see to it whether the senior citizens law has teeth because otherwise, we should scrap it if violators will not be punish. The law is the law,” he said.

In its official website, Goldenfield Kundotel described their establishment as an elegant businessman hotel situated at city’s premier entertainment complex, their nightlife center. As of this writing, the hotel could not be reach for a statement.

Alcazaren and Gadiana were then at Bacolod City to witness it’s MassKara Festival when the alleged incident occurred. They booked for two days from October 15-17, 2010.

Last year, legal practitioner Romulo Makalintal has also filed criminal complaints against two restaurants in Metro Manila for allegedly failing to give him and his wife their senior citizen discounts.

Alcazaren’s case came as several senior citizens in Cebu City has also complained about some local business establishments which allegedly are not also giving them the twenty-percent discounts.

R.A. 9994 penalizes first time offenders of imprisonment of not less than 2 years but not exceeding 6 years and a fine of f P50, 000.00 but not exceeding P100, 000. 00. Subsequent violation has the same prison term but the fine would increase to at least P100, 000.00 but not exceeding P200. 000.00.

The law also provides that authorities may cause the cancellation or revocation of business permit, permit to operate, franchise of any business entity that fails to abide. It stated also that the cancellation or revocation could be done upon the filing of the complaint and or due notice and hearing of the same.