FOLLOWING the latest oil price hikes, lawmakers called on the next Congress to immediately pass a law suspending excise taxes on diesel, gasoline, cooking gas and other oil products.Deputy Speaker Rufus B. Rodriguez and House Deputy Minority Leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani T. Zarate said the next Congress should pursue the proposal to suspend excise taxes on petroleum products.Rodriguez said prices are expected to go up because of the European Union’s decision to ban 90 percent of its oil imports from Russia by the end of the year.Already, the cost of crude oil in the international market has jumped to more than $110 per barrel following the EU’s decision, he said.The House leader said he would refile his bill that would shelve the collection of fuel taxes for four years, the period he expects the economy to recover from the pandemic scarring and the effects of the Ukraine-Russia war on the economy.“The suspension will bring immediate relief to our people,” Rodriguez said.He added that his proposal seeks to suspend the tax increase imposed under Section 43 of Republic Act (RA) 10963, or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) law.Rodriguez explained that enacting the bill will cut pump prices by P6 per liter for diesel, P3 per kilogram for liquefied petroleum gas, P5 for kerosene and P5.65 per liter for gasoline.For his part, Zarate said the Makabayan bloc maintained its stand that the “best way to go is to again regulate the downstream oil industry in our country” to “effectively address the current oil price crisis.”“But for immediate relief to our people, we call on the next Congress and the next administration to immediately pass a law that will suspend the collection of the excise taxes on oil now,” the Davao-based solon said.Bayan Muna and other members of the Makabayan bloc filed House Bill 4711 to regulate the downstream oil industry, HB 244 to re-nationalize Petron Corp. and HB 4712 or the centralized procurement of petroleum in the country.Members of the bloc has also filed HB 10386 or the Unbundling Oil Prices Act of 2021 and HB 243 titled “An Act Reversing Repressive and Anti-Poor Taxation, Repealing for the Purpose Certain Sections of RA 10963 Otherwise Known as Tax Reform For Acceleration and Inclusion Act.”Prices of diesel and gasoline would increase by P6.65 and P2.70 per liter, respectively, on June 7. Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp, has announced prices of its kerosene products would increase by P5.45 per liter.HOWEVER, Sen. Win T. Gatchalian, incoming Ways and Means Committee chairman, has rejected calls to suspend excise tax on oil products.“I do not favor that because that spells a big loss to government coffers,” Gatchalian said adding the move “will do more harm, because public services will suffer” as government faces a P200-billion loss.The Senator said he would rather focus on targeted “ayuda” (subsidy) for affected sectors like drivers of Public Utility Vehicles or tricycles. 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.”Likewise, Gatchalian suggests that government should “look at vices and non-essentials, i.e., gambling.” The senator cited the need for digital payments to have speed, saying: “If e-sabong can be paid via G-cash, what more with ayuda?”On proposals to impose a “Wealth Tax,” the senator acknowledged this merits attention, promising, “We will study that very well.” With reports from Butch FernandezImage credits: