DAVAO CITY, Philippines – A militant lawmaker believes that adding taxes to collect is not the solution for the government to gain more funds.
Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said Saturday that the government should instead improve its revenue collections.
Zarate said the proposed taxes by the Department of Finance (DOF) and some lawmakers will only burden Filipino consumers.
“Instead of raising more regressive taxes, what should be done is for the revenue collection agencies under the DOF to increase its collection efficiency,” Zarate said in a statement.
Among the revenue measures recently floated by the DOF and some members of Congress are the excise taxes on oil products, taxes on vanity products, electronics, sugar, salt and even on the drug Viagra.
“These agencies – BIR and BOC – should not rely mainly on indirect consumption taxes like the value added tax and excise taxes, which would hit the poor the hardest because it is ultimately passed on to consumers regardless of their salaries,”said Zarate.
“Burdening the poor even more while protecting the rich and big corporations is very regressive and characteristic of the neoliberal economic policies of past administrations that are still being pushed by the current economic advisers of the administration,” he said citing DOF’s 2012 data which shows that the BIR’s loss amounted to P400 billion or four percent of the country’s GDP. On the other hand, also in 2012, the BOC had P200 billion revenue loss as well.
“The inefficiency in revenue collection is glaring. Kung makokolekta nga lang annually maski yung BOC P200 Billion losses ay malaki pa ito sa makukuha sa proposed oil excise tax. Kung makokolekta pa ang P400 Billion na revenue losses ng BIR, ay walang dahilan para magpataw pa ng bagong burdensome taxes,” he added. (davaotoday.com)
