How far will your P200 go?
This was the question posed by National Anti-Poverty Commission lead convenor Secretary Liza Maza, who questioned claims by economic managers that the newly-passed tax reform package will not hit the poorest of the poor, despite what they described as “maneagable” increases in the prices of basic commodities.
The government has announced that they will be allotting a P200 monthly subsidy to “augment the incomes of the poorest 50 percent of households” whom they admitted, will be affected by the new tax package.
“Pagka nagkaroon pa talaga ng inflation o pagtataas ng mga presyo ng mga bilihin, yun ang magiging problema para sa kanila. So mas lalo silang mabu-burden [If an inflation or the increase in prices of goods occurs, it will be a problem for them. They will be burdened further],” Maza said at a news briefing in Quezon City Thursday.
“Kung kukwentahin natin kung ano ang taas ng bilihin eh di ima-minus natin yung sa P200. Mako-cover ba o baka mas mataas yung mangyari [If we compute the price increase in goods, then deduct it from the P200, will it be able to cover it or will it turn out to be higher?],” she said.
While the poor have long been exempted from paying income taxes, they would need to spend more due to the new tax law, Maza said.
Maza vowed that the NAPC will monitor the effect of the new tax law on the daily lives of around 21.9-million poor Filipinos, many of which are living below the poverty and are earning P9,600 and below per month.
Malacanang however, did not share the view of the former militant solon, saying that the cash transfers will surely “mitigate” the effects of the new tax package.
“Well, we beg to disagree. By and large, the increase of cost of commodities will not even reach 1% as a result of the TRAIN,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a news briefing at Valencia City, Bukidnon on Friday.
Roque maintained that the benefits of the new tax program are “tremendous” since there will be money that can be used to create jobs and other economic opportunities under the government’s ambitious Build, Build, Build.
The law, which represents the first package of President Rodrigo Duterte’s tax reforms, took effect on Jan. 1, raising duties on fuel, cars and sugar-sweetened drinks to offset a reduction in personal income tax rates.
Maza however, argued that salary is not the only barometer of being poor, as it does not take into account the myriad of deprivations from which poor people suffer.
Poverty, she said, erodes the right of Filipinos to the most basic of needs such as food, shelter, health, work and education.
“Yun bang trabaho mo secure? Do you have a stable job? May bahay ka ba? Kamusta edukasyon? Yung health? Yung usapin ng peace? So lahat yun, aspeto ito ng kahirapan (Is your job secure? Do you have a stable job? Do you have a house? What about education, health and issues on peace? All of these are aspects of poverty),” she said.
She likewise called for reforms on the government’s anti-poverty policy.