BINALONAN may anytime this week remit the provincial government’s share in the collections of real property tax in that town, it was gathered Thursday.

Provincial Treasurer Ramon Criostomo said he was told by the municipal treasurer last week that the town had finally decided to remit the RPT share and a check for the purpose was readied for signing by Mayor Ramon Guico, Jr.

The municipality, it will be recalled, chose to stop remitting the province’s share in view of what Guico described as discrimination by the provincial government in the implementation of projects funded by RPT that seems to favor other towns over his.

The unremitted amount reached some P2 million although Crisostomo could not say the exact amount. “Unless they will open their books of accounts, we cannot determine the exact amount,” he said in a radio interview.

Apparently, the mayor softened up in his earlier defiant stand when he and Gov. Victor Agbayani met during the visit of President Arroyo some two weeks ago for the inauguration of the new public market in time for the celebration of the town fiesta.

The President along with Agbayani and other ranking officials proceeded to the mayor’s house for lunch.

It was not immediately known if the unremitted RPT was touched during the conversations between the governor and the mayor during lunch which was followed by a briefing of an investor.

Guico, a second cousin of the President, has been in Manila for the past days to support the administration which has been under attack by forces out to unseat her. Arroyo subsequently declared a state of national emergency after last week’s failed coup attempt.

Guico is the national president of the mayors’ league.