Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino on Monday called on President Rodrigo Duterte to also listen to the cry of the people, especially the poor, on the high prices of goods and services caused by the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law.
Aquino was referring to Duterte’s pronouncement that the rising prices of goods could prolong the economic stagnation in the provinces.
“One of the factors that would keep the economy in the provinces and the countryside alive is the low prices of goods,” added Aquino, one of four senators who voted against the ratification of the TRAIN Law.
Aquino said Duterte must listen to the people, who were pleading for respite from the burden of high prices of goods and services.
“Let us listen to the sentiments and call of our countrymen. Filipinos are already suffering due to high prices. Let us roll back the excise tax on petroleum due to the TRAIN law,” said Aquino.
He renewed his call for the immediate suspension of the excise tax on petroleum products under the TRAIN Law to ease the public’s burden.
The senator has filed a measure seeking to roll back TRAIN’s excise tax on fuel when average inflation rate surpasses the annual inflation target over a three-month period.
He is also pushing for the full implementation of mitigating measures under the TRAIN Law, such as the unconditional cash transfer program for poor families and the Pantawid Pasada for jeepney operators and drivers.
Aquino also filed a resolution calling for an investigation regarding the implementation of the unconditional cash transfer to ensure if the amount was still sufficient to cover the increase in prices of goods and other services.