PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday warned businessmen to pay the right taxes or face a travel ban.
“I will order the Commissioner of Internal Revenue [Cesar Dulay] to give me a list. If you’re rich, you cannot travel anymore,” Duterte said at the Hotel Elena in Davao City.
“I will ask the [Bureau of] Immigration to stop them because they have violations.
“I will order the BIR to file cases and once these are pending in court, the freedom of movement is restricted. Just like the criminals, you will join them. It’s always a crime if you do not pay your taxes correctly.”
Duterte made his statement even as an Immigration official said a hold-departure order can only be issued if a person has a criminal case pending before a court.
Legal officer Henry Tuban said the order must be issued by the court ordering Immigration to stop the departure of the person named.
But he said the President may directly order the Justice Department to stop the departure of a person when the adverse party is the government or any of its agencies or in the interest of national security, public safety or public health.
In his visit to troops in Catbalogan, Samar, on Monday, Duterte said his next move would be to announce the names of businessmen who were cheating the government by not paying the correct taxes.
But he said businessmen paying the correct taxes would be free from harassment from Internal Revenue.
“Pay the correct taxes and you are free from worries,” Duterte said.
He earlier said he would send the police to the homes of businessmen failing to pay the correct taxes.
“I ask media to accompany the police … the police will go there to ask why are you not paying the proper tax,” Duterte said.