Written by Ed Velasco
Monday, 30 July 2012 00:00 [ tribune.net.ph ]
Bureau
of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares warned all tax
delinquents the claws of the law will not stop until everybody pays the right
taxes due to government.
Henares
was reacting to news reports the BIR under her helm has become too harsh as
almost all sectors of the society are now taxed.
A
sector that recently started paying a combined seven percent is that of small
mining, particularly gold mining,
composed of 400,000 individuals.
The
collection of two percent excise tax and five percent withholding tax against
gold sellers caused the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ gold purchase to drop
dramatically.
The
tax also caused the sellers to sell their gold haul to black market where the precious mineral is shipped out of the
country.
“The
policy is for the BIR to be an enforcement agency and not a customer service
agency and make full use of the remedies allowed under the National Internal
Revenue Code to enforce our tax laws and collect the taxes due the government
in a timely manner,” Henares told The Daily Tribune.
She
said law-abiding people need not to worry that BIR is becoming too harsh as the
strict policy is only against those who don’t pay right taxes.
“If
people are following the law and paying their taxes properly, they have nothing
to worry. Only people who do not pay their taxes have to worry. It will be a
gross injustice to those people who pay their taxes properly, especially the
wage earners, if we do not do our job and make sure others do their legal
obligation. I am only doing my job — which is to collect the right taxes,”
Henares said.
Last
year, Henares was also at the center of controversy when the Supreme Court (SC)
ruled that the expanded value added tax (evat) on tolls was constitutional.
The
SC ruling caused furor from millions of travelers using the six expressways in
the country as it increased tolls by 12 percent.
The
decision forced many motorists to pass by provincial roads to avoid paying
exorbitant fees at toll roads.
Under
Henares, the BIR filed a record number of criminal suits against alleged tax
evaders that include celebrities, singers, doctors and even a pawnshop owner.
However,
none among those charged for tax delinquency was sent to jail.
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