To protect workers as well as government coffers, a party-list lawmaker has vowed to dig deeper into other alleged offenses of Shopee’s affiliate Philippine companies that surfaced after the e-commerce giant’s labor malpractices had been exposed.
“I’ve received information that Shopee may have violated more Philippine laws,” AAMBIS-Owa Rep. Lex Anthony Cris Colada said in a privilege speech.
AAMBIS-Owa stands for the Asosasyon Sang Mangunguma Nga Bisaya-Owa Mangunguma, which loosely translates to Association of Visayan Farmers in English—a political organization working for agrarianism.
Last week, Colada filed House Resolution 1718, which directed an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the issues being faced by Shopee Philippines and SPX Philippines, Inc. or more popularly known as ‘Shopee Express.’
These two local subsidiaries of the Singapore-headquartered Sea Group had allegedly practiced union-busting, while their ownership had been found questionable in relation to the Anti-Dummy Law.
This time, Colada said more recent reports that reached him have raised doubts on Shopee’s tax payments, as well as compliance with immigration laws.
For Colada, any tax evasion must never be condoned, especially in the case of a very popular online shopping platform that earns billions of pesos in sales revenue.
“The government needs to collect more tax revenues to fund our country’s important infrastructure and social amelioration programs. As such, we should ensure that big earners like Shopee pay correct taxes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR),” Colada pointed out.
Also, amidst a spate of illegal entry of foreign nationals who work in the country, Colada committed to look into any involvement of Shopee in violation of immigration rules.
“As it is, Shopee’s subsidiaries here in the Philippines had been disrespecting Filipino workers’ rights. If it’s true that they are also encouraging and facilitating illegal immigration, that’s another offense against our labor laws, sadly to the detriment of our countrymen,” said Colada.
Given lingering concerns on both the quantity and quality of jobs available to Filipinos, Colada believes that illegal foreign workers shouldn’t steal meager employment opportunities from locals.
In this light, Colada urged the House of Representatives to include in its forthcoming probe these additional issues brought forward against Shopee and its top officials.
“Foreign investments in the country are welcome and are much needed for the country’s progress. But these companies should also respect local laws if they want to stay in the country for the long run,” Colada stressed.