ILOILO City – Ilocos Norte governor Imee R. Marcos put forward the broad strokes of how the national government can make up for the revenue loss from the value added tax (VAT) suspension she has proposed.
“A combination of 10 percent improvement in income tax collection, higher absorptive capacity or much less agency underspending, and three other measures can generate P362 billion. That would replace the VAT that would be missed,” she said.
Marcos was in Iloilo City yesterday. She graced the annual convention/seminar of the Association of Government Accountants of the Philippines, Inc. and the national convention of the Philippine Association of Teachers, Administrators and Practitioners in Education, Inc. at the Iloilo Grand Hotel.
Although the substitute combo she suggests will take some effort, she pointed out that “it can be done and done well,” said Marcos.
“I have confidence in the leadership and persuasive power of the Finance secretary Carlos Dominguez over the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and other revenue agencies. I am not asking for the impossible,” she stressed.
Having been a governor and congresswoman, Marcos said she is “very aware of what can be done as regards tax administration and collection.’
BIR figures show that if, for the example, income tax collections grow by (just) 10 percent, the government is poised to earn P102 billion in 2018 and P113 billion in 2019.
VAT revenues can be covered by the other sources of revenue, increased efficiency in the government operation and the growth in excise taxes.
“The suspension of the VAT would provide immediate relief to Filipino consumers. The temporary suspension of the VAT on basic necessities such as food and fuel products would be immediately perceptible by millions of Filipino families,” Marcos asserted.
Marcos said her tax numbers added and that given the greater share of excise taxes in the collections of the government now, “this time could also golden opportunity for the country to restudy the VAT system since we are in the process of overhauling our taxation superstructure.”/PN
