House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on Thursday said the government is forced to pass the controversial tax reform package that would impose P6 per liter tax on petroleum products to make up for the billions of pesos in tax liabilities of the big companies owned by the country’s oligarchs.
Alvarez made the statement as he asked the House committees on ways and means and on good government to conduct a joint probe on big companies which have tax liabilities, including the allegations that the BIR allegedly reduced the tax liabilities of Del Monte Philippines Inc. to only P65.4 million despite the reported assessment reaching P29 billion in supposed tax deficiency liabilities.
Alvarez said there would have been no tax reform package had the BIR met its target collection.
“The House committee on ways and means can inquire on the matter jointly with the House committee on good government and public accountability,” Alvarez said in a radio interview.
Alvarez said the supposed P29-billion tax liabilities was “really foul.”
Aside from the P6 per liter tax on petroleum products, another controversial provision under House Bill 5636, also known as the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) would be the P10 per liter excise tax on sugar and sweetened beverages.
The House of Representatives earlier approved TRAIN on third and final reading by a 246-9 vote.
While TRAIN will no longer impose tax on personal income of not over P250,000, critics said the bill was anti-poor because the public would shoulder the increase in prices of basic goods and services as a result of additional taxes on fuel and SSB’s, among others.
The House ways and means committee chairman Quirino Rep. Dakila Cua, asked the BIR to explain the allegations as Alvarez sought a congressional probe on the matter following the alleged plunder case filed before the Ombudsman against Internal Revenue Commissioner Caesar Dulay and 17 other officials and personnel in connection with the alleged reduction of the tax liabilities of DMPI resulting to the reported loss of P29 billion in potential revenues.
DMPI had denied the purported tax irregularities covering 2011 to 2013 as alleged in the plunder complaint filed against Dulay and other BIR officials.
Reports said a certain Danilo Lihaylihay, who described himself as a “taxpayer”
last month filed a plunder case before the Ombudsman against Dulay and 17 other BIR executives, including his chief of staff Gaudencio Mendoza Jr., who allegedly gave the green light to DMPI to pay only P65.4 million despite the P29 billion in supposed tax liabilities.