Pacquiao wins round in bruising tax fight

MANILAL Philippine world boxing champion Manny Pacquiao has won a Supreme Court reprieve in his battle to avoid paying tens of millions of dollars in extra taxes, authorities said Thursday.
Pacquiao will not have to post a cash bond of 3.3 billion pesos ($75.2 million) and the government is banned from seizing any of his assets while his income tax case is being heard, according to a Supreme Court ruling.
The ruling, handed down this week and sent to AFP by court spokesman Theodore Te on Thursday, also ordered the proceedings be carried out more quickly as they began last year and are still in the pre-trial stage.
Pacquiao expressed relief at the ruling, which came ahead of a China tour starting next week to promote the Macau defense of his World Boxing Organization welterweight title against unbeaten US challenger Chris Algieri in November.
“Let us now let the legal process take its course. For now, I am just glad I will be able to concentrate on training for my upcoming bout,” he said in a statement.
The dispute arose from an initial assessment from the government that Pacquiao, 35, owed 2.2 billion pesos in unpaid taxes for 2008 and 2009.
President Benigno Aquino has waged a bruising campaign against tax evasion as part of a general crackdown on corruption during his four years in office.
Pacquiao, who has held world titles in eight separate weight divisions and is also a member of Congress, has become one of the highest-profile targets of the tax office’s sweep.