Ways and means chief: Tax hikes alone aren’t a solution (Latest Sabong News)
Author
Butch Fernandez
Date
JUNE 06 2022
PREPARING to assume his post as chairman of the Senate’s Ways and Means Committee in the 19th Congress, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said the huge fiscal challenge to a new Marcos administration that will inherit a P12.7 trillion debt, while still helping pandemic-affected sectors to recover, cannot be solved simply by raising taxes or imposing new ones.
Crucial to the effort to shore up tax revenue is making collections more efficient by a combination of the right people, streamlined processes and political will, the senator said in a radio interview on Sunday.
“In fact,” Gatchalian said, “the Ways and Means Committee doesn’t just talk about taxes, but also collection” of taxes.” His reaction was sought as the outgoing Duterte administration’s transition team pitched a combination of fiscal fixes, including new taxes or higher rates, in a bid to free up resources for a new government battling with a huge pandemic-induced debt.
Most people, the lawmaker added, concede there is a need to pay taxes so government has money. “But people resent that some taxes are misused,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino, adding that “many small businessmen I talked to” still chafe over the corruption that goes on in the payment of their taxes/fees.
Sometimes, Gatchalian said, those collecting taxes will deliberately raise the adjustment of tax due, so they have elbow room to lower this upon payment of a bribe.
“Our priority should be to wipe out corruption before talking of raising taxes,” asserted Gatchalian.
This is why, the senator stressed, the new Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) appointees should not simply be those who profess to be clean, but they “must know the
pasikot sikot
[ins and outs], the system of collection.”
He pointed out that, “corruption is not just at the top,” lamenting that “many MSMEs complain of corruption at lower levels.”
Many taxpayers are ready to pay taxes, but hate the corruption that goes with it, the lawmaker lamented.
Asked if he agrees that the choice of BOC heads should be limited to ex-military men, Gatchalian replied that he understood the rationale for such: “They put ex-military men because they are looking for syndicates, corrupt officials, etc. I admit that these things are happening, but we should also look at reforming the system. One way is by computerization.”
He concluded, “So, we also need someone who can improve the system; this is a key qualification for BOC head.”
For instance, Gatchalian recalled their experience in his Valenzuela bailiwick. “If you just raise taxes, only the corrupt—officials and taxpayers—will be happy. The corrupt officials will manipulate the assessment, the corrupt taxpayer will simply not pay the right taxes.”
If government is to boost tax collections, Gatchalian suggests: “let’s look at vices and non-essentials, i.e., gambling.”
On proposals to impose a “Wealth Tax,” the senator acknowledged this merits attention, promising, “We will study that very well.”
Reacting to calls to suspend excise tax on oil products, Gatchalian said: “I do not favor that, because that spells a big loss to government coffers,” adding that it will do more harm, because public services will suffer as government faces a P200-billion loss.
He would rather focus on targeted ‘ayuda’ for affected sectors like Public Utility Vehicle (PUV) or tricycle drivers. The ones most in need should be directly helped, Gatchalian said.
But, the senator stressed that “time is of the essence, ruing that more often, “targeted
nga pero patay na ang kabayo
[but it gets there too late], by the time the subsidy arrives; aid gets to them after six months.”
The senator cited the need for digital payments to have speed, saying: “If e-sabong can be paid via GCash, what more with ayuda?”
On unbundling of energy rates, Gatchalian noted that the courts “issued a TRO” (Temporary Restraining Order) on a move by the Department of Energy (DOE) to push unbundling of charges, but acknowledged that petroleum companies do have the right to keep some of their trade secrets.
“For purposes of transparency, I agree with unbundling, but we can’t compel them to reveal everything,” the senator said.
What can be revealed in the unbundling process? Gatchalian suggests that “first, the source of petroleum inventory, and very important, the timing when it was bought,” explaining that, “the oil company cannot raise prices if [they] just bought it.”