Senator Sonny Angara, chairman of the Senate committee on ways and means, has lashed back at the executive branch for “setting them up for failure.”
“We don’t appreciate that pressure coming from the executive branch because we are doing our best here. But it seems like we’re being set up for failure. We are being set up for failure,” said Angara.
Angara strongly reacted to the warning of Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia that the government’s ambitious “build, build, build” program might not turn into reality if Congress would not pass the tax reform package being pushed by the administration.
In a press conference in Malacañang, Pernia urged Congress to pass the measure “in toto.” He said Congress should realize that the economic team’s interest is really just the country’s development, the improvement of society.
“They wanted to make it appear that if this will not be passed, it’s our fault if the economy failed. Why, are we on the steering wheel? We are not behind the steering wheel, they are—we are just riding,” said Angara.
He said they were prioritizing the administration’s tax reform proposal, but they don't appreciate those kinds of pronouncements from the executive.
“That makes it appear that they’re trying to put us in a corner. That’s what they wanted. It seemed that if we didn’t do this, we should be blamed,” added Angara.
“That’s not true because the Aquino administration was able to build a lot of infrastructure, it was able to grow the economy by six percent by only raising sin taxes. Bakit, hindi nila kaya yun?” he added.
As of the moment, Angara said they are still scrutinizing Malacañang’s proposed tax reform package.
“We’re going to have separate hearings. We’re worried about petroleum taxes and excise taxes and the effect on poorer sectors as warned by the DSWD also,” he said.
He pointed out that the effects of inflation on the poor families are different from middle class families, saying that a middle class family can cope if there’s an increase in food prices, but the poor cannot because it’s really very difficult for them to earn that huge amount.
“So we are asking the DoF to be specific in their assistance programs. Right now, there is no proposed measure, the specifics to be given to the poor. They should be included in the proposal,” he said.
Asked if it can be passed by 2018, Angara replied—“I think we can come up with a measure in the next few months. It’s just that it may not be exactly what is being pushed by the Executive.”
Meanwhile, labor group Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) slammed House Bill 5636 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN), saying that once approved around 30-million workers will become poorer.
The new tax reform package approved by the Lower House will send millions of workers deeper into poverty, ALU-TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said.
Militant labor party-list representative Makabayan, said that the tax measure was anti-poor because while it did lower personal income taxes, the public would shoulder the increase in prices of basic goods and services as a result of additional taxes on fuel and sugar-sweetened beverages, among others.
“The impact of the proposed tax measure to workers is not uplifting because those who are already poor workers would become even poorer. This bill is a big mistake committed by congressmen who approved it,” Tanjusay said.
“With the approval of the Lower House, there is more reason for us to pursue our standing proposal to President Duterte to give P500 monthly cash subsidy for minimum-wage workers to cope with the impending rise of prices of goods and services to be created by the tax measure,” the labor group said.
The ALU-TUCP said it proposes to grant an Emergency Labor Empowerment and Assistance Program (ELEAP) by providing minimum-wage earners earning a salary of P10,000 a month a P500 monthly subsidy through cash vouchers in purchasing food, medicines and tuition fee.
According to Tanjusay, the tax measure will hit the poorest of the poor and will push inflation even higher at a faster rate. The current inflation rate is at 3.4 percent in March, the highest in four years.
The measure will also marginalized further the informal sector workers who are earning P6,000 a month because of the imposition of excise tax on fuel.
“Productivity of workers will be severely affected once they experience more poverty brought about by this tax reform package,” Tanjusay said.