Another round of tax hike on tobacco products as proposed by the Department of Finance will not only negatively affect the lives of people who depend on the industry, but also result in further incidents of smuggling in the country, an executive of Japan Tobacco Inc. Philippines said Monday.
JTI Philippines general manager Manos Koukourakis reminded that tobacco taxes had already been increased by the Congress in December 2017. These new taxes were implemented in 2018.
“Currently in the Philippines, we have a quite balanced situation… When such a unique balance is stricken, why would anyone like to disrupt it?” Koukourakis asked.
He said the balanced situation included the decline in number of smokers, from 26 million in 2013 to 16 million in 2018. Julito G. Rada