MANILA, 28 April 2004 — Political leaders in Manila yesterday told the government of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to drop its plan to reimpose taxes on the income of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
Vice President Teofisto Guingona Jr. described the plan as “lamentable, unfair and opportunistic.”
“Our OFW sector is the most energetic force in our economy. It should not be preyed upon as an industry, while our revenue collecting agencies remain inefficient in their tax collection efforts,” Guingona said.
Sen. Manuel Villar, chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs committee, also opposed the proposal, saying “the government is looking for quick-fix solutions to serious fiscal problems.”
“OFWs should not be made milking cows. They have already made significant contributions to the domestic economy,” he said.
Guingona said while it might appear logical to ask highly paid OFWs such as engineers, ship captains and other professionals to pay more in taxes, “officials at the Bureau of Internal Revenue who are remiss in their duties now conveniently want to target OFWs because they declare their true incomes and judiciously remit these to the Philippines.”
He said the BIR should instead concentrate on “big-time tax evaders, along with professionals here at home who grossly under-declare their incomes.”
Villar said Department of Finance officials have been used to borrowing to cover our country’s huge expenses when there are more creative and better ways to solve the budget deficit problem.
He suggested that local government units study the possibility of granting incentive schemes to collectors working at the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs.
“LGUs have a better idea on how much these local businesses are earning. So tax evasion could easily be sidestepped by hands-on monitoring of these LGUs,” Villar said.
