MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday rejected suggestions to put on hold the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law in light of recent upticks in consumer prices.
In his State of the Nation Address (SONA), Duterte justified the passage of the law as a measure needed for inclusive growth.
“Some have incorrectly blamed our efforts towards a fairer tax system for all the price increases in the past months, and some irresponsibly suggesting to stop TRAIN implementation. We cannot, and should not,” he said.
Duterte signed the proposed TRAIN Act into law last December. It expanded the value-added tax (VAT) base and reduced personal income taxes starting this year.
Recent data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed inflation registered at 5.2 percent in June, the fastest in at least five years.
Duterte emphasized that tax reform is needed in promoting inclusive growth, as additional tax revenue would help subsidize those in need.
“We need this for sustainable growth that leaves no Filipino left behind. TRAIN is already helping poor families and senior citizens cope up with rising prices,” he said.
“We have distributed unconditional cash transfers to four million people and we will help six million more this year,” the President noted.
The government’s unconditional cash transfer program provides beneficiaries P200 a month or P2,400 a year. This will be increased to P300 a month of P3,600 a year in 2019 and 2020. (GMA News)
