This week's Kapihan forum was held to increase community awareness onRA 9337 or the Reformed Value Added Tax Law. Invited guest panelists from the
Bureau of Internal Revenu are (L-R): Jose Senador, Chief of the Taxpayers' Service Section and Amelita Jaculbe, Revenue Officer 1 together with PIA Provincial Infocen Manager Jennifer Catan-Tilos. (See full story below).
Businessmen warned against taking advantage of VAT law
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) here is warning businessmen in the province against taking advantage of the newly increased Value Added Tax (VAT) rate to raise their profit even if they are not covered by VAT.
VAT does not cover food items in their original state or unprocessed foods like chicken, pork, beef, rice and raw sugar, says Jose Senador, chief of the BIR Taxpayers' Service Section here, in a recent Kapihan forum held by the local Philippine Information Agency.
Senador said that BIR has received several written complaints from local consumers who raised a clamor over the increase of prices of the said food items in local markets.
However, Senador clarified that the use of fuel and electricity has triggered the increase of some food items not covered by VAT.
"Fuel is one of the components used in transporting the food items from the supplier to the retailers. Since power and fuel are the new areas covered by VAT, the price increase has affected the cost of these food items," says Senador.
Consumers are also urged to be vigilant in asking for receipts in their purchases.
Non-VAT establishements are mandated by law to issue official receipts for sale of goods or services worth P25.00 and above, while VAT-registered establishments are required to issue receipts even for purchases worth as low as P1.00.
The increase on the VAT rate from 10% to 12% was implemented nationwide effective February 1, 2006 under RA 9337 or the Reformed Value Added Tax Law in order to raise additional revenues.
Senador said that the government sees this is the fastest way to solve the fiscal crisis as an estimate of P80 billion is expected to be raised from VAT collection nationwide.
Under RA 9337, the revenues raised will go to the delivery of basic services such PhilHealth, Department of Health and local governments which will be intended for the construction of public elementary and secondary school buildings, energy, environmental conservation and agricultural modernization.
Senador said their office currently has a tax collection goal of P751 million for this year, which is 30% more than their collection in the previous year.
The BIR here has been consistently exceeding their tax collection goal for five years now from 2000 to 2005.In the same forum, Senador reminded owners of business establishments in the province who are VAT-registered to issue official receipts reflecting the 12% VAT component for every purchase made in their establishment.
VAT-registered establishments are required to bill separately the tax component of 12%. "The law is very specific, that establishments should bill separately the VAT component and it should be shown on the receipt," says Senador.
Pursuant to RA. 9337, business establishments are required to reconfigure the program of their cash register machines or point of sales (POS) machines to issue receipts reflecting and showing separately a breakdown of the 12% output VAT.
"When they started their cash register machines, the VAT rate was still 10% but effective February 1 the rate was increased to 12%. There were clamors from business establishments that it will take time to reconfigure their machines," Senador said.
He said that business firms were given one month to readjust their cash register machines, POS machines and computers until February 28.
"But if they fail to do so, they are allowed to issue manual invoices/official receipts reflecting the output VAT at 12%," he added.
Output VAT is the 12% VAT passed on by the seller of goods or services to the buyers.
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Tourist influx in NegOr increase in 2005
Negros Oriental continues to attract a hefty number of tourists despite various foreign governments cautioning their citizens about traveling to the Philippines.
According to Provincial Tourism Officer Myla Abella, they expect that tourist arrivals in 2005 would be higher than the previous year once her office has finished collecting the figures from hotels and resorts across the province.
So far, data collected by the Provincial Tourism Office showed a partial total of 164, 615 tourist arrivals for 2005. "But we are still waiting for the report from around eight major establishments to come in," says Abella.
Abella is confident that the final data would show a higher number of tourist influx in 2005 compared to the total 165,135 recorded in 2004.
She also believes that tourist arrivals are actually higher than what records would show as some tourist visits are not documented. "We base our data from reports submitted by hotels and resorts. But there are tourists who come here and don't stay in these establishments but with friends and relatives," Abella adds.
Dumaguete City, despite having recorded a 6% drop in tourist arrivals in 2005, is still the major tourist destination in the province, followed by Dauin, which attracts tourists due to its beach resorts and prime diving spots, says Abella.
Abella says Negros Oriental remains safe for tourists, echoing the Department of Tourism's earlier statement that travel to the Philippines remains safe even as citizens in other countries have been cautioned about traveling to the country following the declaration of a state of emergency.
The national government continues to enhance tourism infrastructure and security measures as it recognizes the sector's strong potential to spur economic growth.
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There is still no martial law, says CHR
Contrary to many perceptions that martial law has returned, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) here said that martial law has not yet taken effect with President Arroyo's declaration of national emergency.
According to local CHR Special Investigator III Jesus Cañete, the basic human rights are still being recognized under Proclamation No. 1017.
"It's a common misnomer that warrantless arrests are now in practice because warrantless arrests are still allowed by law provided that some specific technicalities are being followed," says Cañete.
The president has earlier vowed to uphold the rule of law and respect human rights as she quashed talk of "creeping martial law" following her declaration of a state of national emergency.
Several local chief executives and law enforcement officers in the province have supported the President's move to declare a state of emergency in the country, including Governor George P. Arnaiz, Dumaguete City Mayor Agustin Perdices, Bais City Mayor Hector Villanueva, Philippine National Police Provincial Director P/Supt. Melvin Ramon Buenafe and Col. Jogy Leo Fojas of the 303rd Brigade in Murcia, Negros Occidental.
Siquijor Governor Orlando Fua also backed the President's move, saying that the declaration of a state of national emergency is the ultimate weapon to blunt obstructions to the goal of attaining economic stability and winning the battle against poverty. "The opposition's move is destructive to the progress of the country," says Fua.
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Confab on reproductive health through population, env't approaches set
Selected media practitioners and information officers from six provinces in Visayas will converge in Dumaguete City for a two-day training and workshop on "Communicating Reproductive Health through Integrated Population-Environment Approaches."
Conducted by the PATH Foundation Philippines, Inc., the workshop on March 22 to 23 aims to increase the awareness of media practitioners on population-health-environment issues, programs and challenges as a tool for reproductive health (RH) policy advocacy.
The activity is also expected to develop a corps of media advocates who will promote and popularize population-environment as an approach towards poverty reduction, sustainable development and better reproductive health and environment management.
PATH Foundation Philippines, Inc. (PFPI) is a non-stock, non-profit and non-government organization whose mission is to improve reproductive health and environmentally sustainable development in underserved areas in the Philippines.
PFPI is currently implementing the Integrated Population and Coastal Resource Management (IPOPCORM) initiative in selected municipalities in Palawan, Bohol, Camiguin, Siquijor, Cebu and Negros Oriental.
IPOPCORM is a project that aims to encourage integration of family planning/reproductive health strategies into coastal resource management agenda, plans and models.
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PGMA cites gov't agencies, biz sector for raising investor confidence
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo commended recently the performance of concerned government agencies and the support of the local business sector in raising investor confidence and improving the country's economy.
"I would like to thank the good performance of government agencies, like the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and the confidence of the businessmen in the stock market and establishing factories and offices," the President said during a roundtable discussion recently at the Kalayaan Hall in Malacañang.
To make prices stable, BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Gunigundo told the President that BSP is making sure there is enough money in circulation to enhance the gross domestic product and attain the inflation target of four to five percent this year.
Last year, De Limsa said investments grew by 32.6%, exports by 6.2% and employment by one percent.
Finance Secretary Cesar Virata said the early passage of the 2006 national budget is crucial to further boost investor confidence which, he added, would greatly benefit the education, health, social services and infrastructure sectors.
While waiting for the passage of the 2006 budget, the President said the government has pump-primed the economy by frontloading fund releases to the education and health sectors.
"This year, we have already released P500 million for school buildings, P500 million for high school vouchers, P500 million for Food for School program, and P500 million for college scholarships," the President said.
She added that P500 million was released for the health insurance program and another P500 million for the acquisition of half-priced medicines that would greatly benefit the poor.
For his part, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Donald Dee said Moody's Investor Service is likely holding up a possible upgrade of the country's credit rating as it still wants to see an additional P75 billion increase in tax collection and the passage of 2006 national budget.
He told the President that because if the country's good economic performance, that South Koreans have noted that the "golden age of the Philippines has finally arrived."
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INFOBITS:
What are the salient features of the RA 9337?
The 10% VAT rate is retained; however, the President shall increase the VAT rate to 12% starting January 1, 2006 if any of the conditions imposed by RA 9337 is satisfied.
The following goods and services are now subject to VAT: petroleum products and other indigenous fuels, power and electric cooperatives, services rendered by doctors and lawyers, domestic carriage of passengers by air and sea, non-food agricultural products and works of art, literary works and musical compositions.
Why should the VAT rate be increased from 10% to 12%?
This is part of a bigger effort to address the country's budget deficit. We need to increase our tax collection to sustain the government's delivery of basic services. While we can conceptually reduce government expenditures, we can only reduce it by so much because the public relies on government for these basic services, which include education and medical services.
If we increase the VAT rate from 10% to 12% in 2006, we can raise as much as P35.12 billion more. On the other hand, if this measure is coupled with the repeal of the Vat exemptions mentioned above and other provisions of the VAT bill, we can raise up to P81.41 billion assuming a 70% collection efficiency.
Raising these additional revenues is expected to translate to the strengthening of the Peso-Dollar exchange rate and better interest rates arising from improved investor perception of the Philippines.
Is RA 9337 anti-poor?
No, the RA 9337 recognizes the needs of the poor and exempts basic commodities and socially sensitive products from VAT. Among these VAT exempt commodities are: agricultural and marine products in their original state such as vegetables, meat, fish, fruits, eggs and rice; lease of residential houses not exceeding P10,000 monthly; educational services rendered by both public and private educational institutions; books, newspapers and magazines; sales of persons and establishments earning not more than P1.5 million annually, which could include sari-sari stores, carinderias and street vendors.
Will pump prices of fuel increase due to VAT?
Pump prices of fuel will increase slightly. But to cushion the impact of imposing VAT on fuel, RA 9337 put in place a reduction of excise tax on kerosene, diesel and bunker fuel oil so that what would otherwise result in a 10% increase in pump prices of these products would be minimized. Thus, pump prices of petroleum products will increase between 2.5% to 8.2% only, instead of a full 10%. For example, LPG costing P453.00 per cylinder will increase to P488.86 per cylinder- instead of P498.30 per cylinder. Kerosene costing P30.80 per liter will increase to P35.02 per liter- instead of P36.32
NEWS FROM SIQUIJOR:
More local officials back state of emergency
Guv Fua says it's the ultimate weapon to stability and progress
President Arroyo found allies in local government executives and youth leaders, who have thrown their full support behind her declaration of a state of national emergency.
In Siquijor province, Provincial Governor Orlando B. Fua said the declaration of a state of national emergency is "the ultimate weapon to blunt all obstructions to the goals of attaining stability and to the battle not only against criminality but against poverty."
He said that he supports whatever actions, unmindful of whoever sits, as long as they do not destruct the country's progress and are within the bounds of the constitution. "I am for the welfare of the people particularly of alleviating poverty," the governor said. The actions of some of the members of the opposition are destructive to our country's progress," Fua added.
Another official, who refused to be named said Pres. Arroyo is doing well. "Of course, we cannot afford our government to be endangered..., it is just good we have a strong President," he said. Those conspirators with all their destabilizing actions are pulling us down. They want our government to collapse so they can take over," he said.
Likewise, PNP-Siquijor Provincial Director, Police Superintendent Domingo Orlando Ualat said his troop remains loyal to the chain of command and are true to their mandate of securing and protecting the people of Siquijor. He said he has been alerting every station in the province "for possible attack of lawless elements that might take advantage of the situation in Manila."
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued last Friday, February 24, Presidental Proclamation No. 1017 declaring the country under a state of emergency to "thwart a conspiracy to overthrow the government among the communist rebel movement, certain military officers, and some members of the opposition," Malacañang report said.
The Proclamation states that in many instances conspirators have repeatedly tried to bring down the President. It also bared that the claims of these elements have been magnified by certain segments of the national media. According to the Proclamation, these series of destabilizing actions has been hurting the country by obstructing governance, adversely affecting the economy, hindering its growth and sabotaging the people's confidence in the government and their faith in the future of the country./pia
Commercial fishers nabbed in San Juan
In the latest of the list of commercial fishers encroaching the sea waters of Siquijor province, Boat Capt./Master Fisherman Emmanuel Rhoda and more or less 30 crew members of FB Perpetual Socorro were rounded up by local authorities in San Juan recently.
Caught in the act in the fishing operation in the municipal waters of San Juan, the men on board the fishing boat owned by Maria Banggay of Tinago, Dumaguete City were arrested through the joint team of the provincial and municipal Bantay Dagat and the local police here, investigator said.
The Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO) said an estimated worth of P3 million of fishing gear, the biggest amount so far in the history of illegal fishing apprehension in Siquijor was confiscated through the violation of RA 8880 otherwise known as the Philippine Fisheries Code.
Agriculture Officer Arnold Manginsay said the consolidated forces of the Bantay Dagat and the local Philippine National Police (PNP) have successfully carried out the operation. A case against the commercial fishers was already filed in court, he said.
SPO4 Conrado D. Agang, Jr., Chief of Police, said the incident was yet a prelude to more heightened moves in protecting the security landscape of the town.
"We are always on alert of securing peace and order in a bid to prevent these unlawful men from perpetrating", he said.
Aside from its rich municipal sea waters being a target of commercial fishers, San Juan, he said, is also a place where critical infrastructures are found such as the SMART and GLOBE cell sites which are possible targets for rebels' offensive attacks.
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EV mayor bares accomplishments, lauds KALAHI
It was a good year.
Thus said Enrique Villanueva (Talingting) Mayor Elery Clint Orquillas in an interview when asked how their municipality was faring well in terms of development projects last year.
"Despite some setbacks due to lack of insufficient resources, projects especially waterworks and electrification were made visible through the funding assistance of the KALAHI", he said.
Aside from those funded through the congressional fund, projects such as the expansion of Municipal Budget and Assessor's Offices, Tulapos Day Care Center, Balolong Farm-to-Marlet road, Olave electrification and installation of Parian water system/submersible pump were successfully realized through the KALAHI intervention, he said.
A provision of the basic necessities of water and electricity occupies the mayor's concern for the municipality. With the major counterpart coming from the Kapit Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan: CIDDS (KALAHI-CIDSS), the relatively far barangays can now claim to be beneficiaries of the implemented projects of electrification and installation of water sytem.
Orquillas said tiding away economic difficulties of his constituents remain to be his challenge this year. He said that through the cooperation of everybody, they will continue to find ways to harness any limited resources so that real development will take place in their municipality.
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New TESDA prov'l chief dreams of self-sustaning schools in Siquijor
Newly installed provincial director Leo M. Gultiano of the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) here hopes of seeing self-sustaining schools in Siquijor in the near future.
He said this can be realized though cooperation and commitment of various leaders and stakeholders.
According to Gultiano educational development must promote competitiveness, in both principle and substance, and this can be made by chalking up significant strides in today's curriculum. "It's high time now for our schools to sport a new look and find innovative ways without relying too much funds and help make our students lead a better life after graduation", he said.
He cited Lazi National Agricultural School's plan of expanding its service area to every town of Siquijor. Through this newly-proposed scheme people can be enrolled in vocational courses within their respective localities. The mode of learning will be done through a modular approach to be be availed by all interested youth, even parents. He said units earned from the modules are credited to any colleges or universities if one pursues a baccalaureate degree. Aside from lesser expenses, it is convenient and accessible to everybody in the locality, he said.
Gultiano strongly disagreed with the many people's perception of the technical education as "second class". "This is a laidback mindset possessed by those who are unknowledgeable of the advantages of technical and vocational skills. Little do they know these skills are generating widely-shared confidence here and abroad", he remarked.
"Students earning vocational courses have 70% to 80% employment rate compared to those graduated with baccalaureate degrees. These prove people wrong on their narrow opinions about technical education", Gultiano said.
Paradigm shift is the buzzword synonymous to global competitiveness, he stressed. He said this has been the focus of TESDA in order to develop people's skills that will enable the country as a whole to move from agri-based and service-oriented economy to industrialization country status.
A former Administrator of the TESDA Technology Institute, Leo M. Gultiano graduated Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of San Carlos, Cebu City. He earned Master of Science in Rural Regional Development Training at Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok, Thailand and Master of Arts in Economics in UP Dilliman. He is a holder of both local and international distinctions and scholarships.
SOUNDBYTES:
Travel to RP remains safe, says DOT
The Department of Tourism said that the country remained safe for tourists even as foreign government cautioned their citizens about traveling to the Philippines following the declaration of a state of emergency.
Nine oil firms cut prices anew
Following the lead of Unioil Philippines Inc., other oil companies rolled back the prices of their pump products yesterday.
BIR sees income tax collection rising 24%
The Bureau of Internal Revenue expects income taxes paid by individual and corporate taxpayers to jump 24 percent this year with the full implementation of the new value added tax law and all-out campaign against tax evaders.
La Niña not so bad, says PAGASA
The La Niña predicted to hit the country in coming months would not be as severe as that of 1998 which caused flash floods that killed thousands of people and destroyed hundreds of million of pesos' worth of crops, the weather bureau said.
Scholarship grants open in Taiwan
The Taiwan Ministry of Education is providing nine scholarship grants for postgraduate studies and three scholarship grants to study the Mandarin language for academic year 2005 to promote academic exchange and strengthen the bilateral relations between Taiwan and the Philippines.
VCO maker enters int'l market
A local producer of virgin coconut oil, which was believed to help cure the acquired immune deficiency syndrome, has penetrated the world market.
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