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| 13 AUGUST 2007 | ||
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| 13 AUGUST 2007 | ||
| Statement of Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye On Erap Clemency |
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We have always maintained the position of
observing the rule of law and respecting the independence of the courts. Let us just wait for the decision of the Sandiganbayan. |
| PGMA orders military to minimize civilian casualties in Sulu, Basilan offensive |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered today
military troops pursuing Abu Sayyaf terrorists and renegade members of the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Basilan and Sulu to minimize
collateral damage on the civilian population, even as she sought heightened
initiatives for a peaceful end to the Mindanao conflict. In a speech during the 16th annual general assembly of the Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) at the Intercontinental Hotel in Makati City this morning, the President said even as she spoke, “our government forces are in a full offensive against terrorist cells in Sulu.” At the same time, the President said she issued this morning three security directives to address the current hostilities in Mindanao. “First, keep Basilan and Sulu operations firmly in control to minimize civilian casualties with the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) help in evacuating them and respect ceasefire guidelines in close consultation with the International Monitoring Team whose mandate we should seek to be extended for it expires next month,” she said. The second presidential directive is to “hold urgent talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) under the Malaysian auspices to contain and resolve the Basilan-Sulu situation.” “Make it clear that the government has to secure its forces and areas as part of peace effort and law enforcement but will not overrun MILF areas,” she said. Thirdly, she directed those concerned to “brief the OIC committee of eight on Mindanao development underlining both the limited military operations and a continuing peace and development efforts including huge outlays in the 2007 and 2008 budget for Mindanao including Basilan and Sulu.” She also said it was necessary to harness a Bishop, Ulama conference and other religious and civil society groups for peace efforts and other civil society groups,” including FPI to bring peace to Mindanao. The President also appealed to politicians
“not to exploit the peace initiatives for politics” amid calls from several
lawmakers for the military to explain the alleged lapses that led to
casualties among the soldiers. “I am sending my army chief to the frontlines where he can be near my soldiers,” she said. Government forces have suffered heavy casualties in two separate ambuscades staged by Abu Sayyaf terrorists and renegade MILF members recently in Basilan and Sulu. The MILF acknowledged engaging the Marines in the Basilan clash, claiming that the soldiers entered their territory without the proper coordination in violation of a ceasefire agreement. They denied, however, beheading 10 of the 14 fallen Marines. On the issue of the ticklish ancestral domain, the President said: "And if it would not adversely affect the Philippine negotiating position and provoke alarm among Christians, a pilot implementation of the envisioned Muslim ancestral domain regime should be undertaken to demonstrate our sincerity to achieve peace." "We've declared ancestral domain among indigenous peoples and I don't see why anybody should be scared if there is ancestral domain with our Muslim people," she said. The President has announced the holding of the first peace and security summit in Bohol on Aug. 23-24 to discuss urgent concerns, including the insurgency problem. |
| Let the courts decide first, Palace says on Erap clemency proposal |
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Malacañang said today it would rather wait for
the decision of the Sandiganbayan before making any comment on the proposed
clemency being broached in the House of Representatives for all enemies of
the state including deposed President Joseph Estrada. Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye said in a statement that the government has always maintained the position of observing the rule of law and respecting the independence of the courts. “Let us just wait for the decision of the Sandiganbayan,” he said when asked about the House bill being pushed by Speaker Jose de Venecia. The bill, which De Venecia said would be filed soon, would push for an all-encompassing amnesty for Estrada, military-rebel-turned Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, insurgents and all others who have commited political crimes. De Venecia said the bill aims to unify the nation and forge genuine reconciliation. Although De Venecia said the proposal has already gained support from some high-ranking government officials, Malacanang, according to Bunye, is not making any comment at this time since the bill has yet to be filed. Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita had earlier disclosed in published reports, however, that the Palace is putting together a general amnesty for all enemies of the state including communist and Muslim rebels. Compared to the 1995 general amnesty passed by Congress during the term of former President Fidel Ramos, the planned amnesty will be wide-ranging, according to De Venecia, “to create the beginning of real national unity.” |
| BIR tightens noose on tax evaders thru computerization |
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It will now be a lot harder for tax evaders to
cheat on their taxable income following the formal launching today of the
Revenue Watch Dashboard (RWD) and the Local Government Unit-Revenue
Assurance System (LGU-RAS) of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). No less than President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo attended the launch of the two computerized systems during a command conference at the BIR's headquarters in Quezon City this morning. Stressing that there would be no "sacred cows" in the campaign against tax evasion, the President added that the government is determined to go after tax cheats and prosecute them. Also present at the command conference were Finance Secretary Margarito Teves, acting BIR Commissioner Lilian Hefti and other DOF and BIR officials. The President had earlier presided over a
similar command conference at the Bureau of Customs (BoC) to personally
assess the BoC's revenue collection performance and find ways to recover the
revenue collection shortfall in the first semester of the year. A computerized online facility, the RWD monitors actual revenue collections against collection targets at all levels of the BIR organization, from the national level to the examiners. The LGU-RAS, on the other hand, is also a state of the art on line performance monitoring system that will give the BIR real time results to tax queries on the LGU level. It matches BIR with LGU data using existing BIR Data Quality and Matching Infrastructure that reports immediately inconsistent declarations by taxpayers to uncover revenue opportunities for both the BIR and LGU. Aside from uncovering non-filers and stop-filers, the LGU-RAS will also report fictitious TIN (Tax Identification Numbers) registration and declarations and tax promote compliance and consistent declarations. The RWD and LGU-RAS will also allow the BIR to monitor the progress of its revenue collection at any given time, but more importantly, it will identify areas with discrepancies in revenue collection. Discrepancies such as revenue leakages, returns with inconsistencies, unusual patterns of tax declarations, long running and unresolved notices and audits can be acted upon immediately by the Bureau based on accurate and relevant information. The President lauded the BIR for introducing the two new programs which she said is an example of technology used to combat tax evasion. She also congratulated the BIR for exceeding its collection target for July of P56-billion by P1-billion through measures focused on improving collection efficiency. The specific actions undertaken by the BIR for July 2007 included the following: 1) Measures to detect and deter proliferation of fly-by-night establishments. 2) Reiteration and clarification of top 10,000 private corporations and government entities of their mandatory obligation to withhold taxes on their purchases and expenditures. 3) Mandating additional audit procedures and documentation on examiners' report to address leakage in VAT (Value Added Tax) collections. 4) Expansion and constant exchange of information with other government entities such as the Insurance Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, and LGUs. 5) Specific audit of PEZA (Philippine Export Zone Authority) and Board of Investments-registered enterprises with data on error and claimed income tax holiday; and, 6) Sending of reminder letters to all large taxpayers with a plea to improve voluntary compliance. |
| PGMA forms revenue & anti-smuggling task forces with private sector's participation |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo formed today
two task forces to be placed under the National Competitiveness Council as
she announced her intent “to harness private sector support for revenue and
anti-smuggling efforts.” This, even as she enthused that the government has already met its revenue collection target for July after failing to meet the target during the first semester of the year. In her speech before the Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) at the Hotel Intercontinental in Makati City where she inducted the FPI’s 15 officers and 15 new members, President Arroyo announced her creation of the Revenue Enhancement Task Force which will be under Finance Secretary Margarito Teves; and the Anti-Smuggling Task Force under the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group to which she invited the FPI to be a part of. “… For the Anti-Smuggling Task Force, I invite the Federation of Philippine Industries, led by (FPI President Jesus) “Jess” Arranza, since you are very focused on fighting smuggling, to join the Anti-Smuggling Task Force in behalf of the private sector,” the President said. The Chief Executive explained that the new task forces shall be “similar to the Anti-Red-Tape Task Force under (Trade) Secretary Peter Favila.” “And as you know, (Trade Secretary) Peter (Favila) is in need of task force members from both the private sector and public sector,” the President explained. The FPI was organized 16 years ago on Jan. 24, 1991, and is composed of business leaders and captains of industries who were dubbed by President Arroyo as “champions (of industry) because you work very hard to make sure that Philippine industry is not left behind… You are indispensable partners in development as well as in security.” Only last weekend, the President ordered the destruction of imported luxury cars worth millions of pesos to demonstrate her resolve in curbing the unabated smuggling of goods into the country. FPI President Jesus Arranza, who also heads the Coconut Oil Refiners Association, revealed instances of “insidious forms of smuggling” in the Bureau of Customs (BOC), including the entry of ceramic tiles from China that could cover “an unprecedented 4.3 million square meters” of floor space,” only some 10 percent of which is declared at the BOC for entry into the country. “I’ve been looking forward to meeting with major business chambers to call on you to work with government in boosting tax collection and fighting smuggling which is a major concern of tough business leaders. “And it is a good time to start with you because your federation… is especially active in anti-smuggling advocacy to protect Philippine industry and Philippine labor,” the President said. President Arroyo told the FPI -- composed of some 26 associations and 27 big corporations – that the Presidency is taking the first-semester revenue-collection shortfall “seriously” but asked that the shortfall be put into context even as government is going into the necessary remedial measures. “We take the shortfall in the revenue collection by the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) and the BOC seriously… (but) let us put the shortfall into context. “We were not on target for the first half of the year but we have met our target for July,” the President announced. “This shows that we knew what had to be done to get back on target. This shows that we have been taking the required action. “And if you remember 2006, our dedication and discipline to raise revenues led to a 20-percent growth in revenues from the previous year,” the President recalled. The President further noted that “revenues from collection efficiency and tax administration reforms alone reached P41 billion in 2006, about seven-tenths percent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product), higher than the conservative medium-term plan of one percent.” “So, we have demonstrated our ability to meet the challenges of revenue generation and we are confident that we will succeed again in this instance,” the President enthused further. President Arroyo then unveiled to the industry champions “some of the actions we have taken and will take to address the situation.” First, “we have asked our senior team to take responsibility for the actions of their agencies…” Second, “we are vigorously implementing action plans with the BIR and the BOC with the support of our development partners and our industry partners like you, to collect, to improve tax collection efficiency, (including) holding a separate command conference set in BIR which I will hold after coming from here, and the BOC which we held last Friday…” Over at the BIR, the President said she is “reviewing performance and transferring or, at least, warning poor performance among revenue district officers and port collectors.” And over at the BOC, the President said she has decided to conduct a “section by section dissection” of the 30 sections of the revenue output of two major ports – the Port of Manila and the Manila International Container Port – after noting that “fifty-five centavos for every peso raised by the BOC come from these ports.” “The transaction value in these ports is so huge that the mere section of the Port of Manila has the collection equivalent of most ports outside the National Capital Region. “If that is the case, I found it more productive for us to scrutinize the performance of the 15 sections in each of the two ports rather than waste time evaluating the yield of, say, the Port of Surigao…” |
| Local officials, business federation back JPEPA |
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The Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership
Agreement (JPEPA) found today two strong supporters in the Federation of
Philippine Industries (FPI) and the League of Municipalities of the
Philippines (LMP). Citing the benefits of JPEPA to the country, the two groups told President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo they support the agreement which the Philippines had forged with Japan on the sidelines of the Asia-Europe Meeting in Finland in September last year. The two organizations voiced their full backing for the JPEPA on separate occasions – the FPI during its 16th annual general assembly at the Hotel Intercontinental in Makati City this morning, and the LMP during the induction of its officers and new members at the Manila Hotel this afternoon. The Chief Executive was the special guest in both events. In his speech, FPI president Jesus Arranza told the President that the federation supports the accord between Japan and the Philippines which will open the Japan labor market to Filipino professionals, including doctors, nurses and engineers, and increase Japanese investments in the country. Later this afternoon, the LMP presented to the President three resolutions, two of them strongly endorsing the JPEPA. The Chief Executive motored to the Manila Hotel from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) command conference in Quezon City to induct the new set of officers of the LMP. In Resolution 002-2007, the LMP called on the Senate “through Senate President Manuel Villar” to approve the JPEPA, saying “local government units, specifically the 1,502 municipalities all over the country, are elated to be targeted for matching with Japanese counterparts with mutual interest and high potential for cooperative undertakings.” In Resolution No. 003-2007, the local officials lauded the Chief Executive for her “initiative to forge a mutually beneficial economic partnership with Japan by pushing the JPEPA,” saying the LMP “supports President Arroyo’s initiative to forge an economic pact with neighboring Japan in order to sustain the gains in the last few years and shore up business confidence in the country.” The LMP also cited the President for “her courageous effort in pursuing the approval and ratification of the JPEPA.” The LMP membership “recognizes the importance of the JPEPA as an instrument to improve the lives of 85 million Filipinos with the immediate prospects of generating livelihood and employment opportunities for the Filipino people,” the resolution said. The league also lauded the President for having “displayed great resolve and strong leadership in piloting the Philippine ship of state to safe waters, despite the political storms that came on the way.” “In pushing for the approval and ratification of the JPEPA, the President had courageously treaded unfamiliar grounds that clearly showed her concern for the welfare of the poor and the marginalized sectors of the country.” The LMP “casts its unconditional support for JPEPA as it will benefit millions of Filipinos and likewise encourages President Macapagal-Arroyo to leave no stone unturned until the economic accord is finally approved and ratified by the Senate,” the resolution said. The LMP likewise presented a resolution to the President asking for “initial allocation of ambulances, fire trucks, and patrol cars to all provincial chapters.” |
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President Gloria Macapagal
Arroyo's Speech During the 16th Annual General Assembly
of the Federation of Philippine Industries, Inc. Hotel Intercontinental, Makati City 13 August 2007 |
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Thank you very much, Secretary Peter Favila, and
thank you, Chairman Ito Carlos for reminding me about the G 11 that we used
to have every Thursday when I was Undersecretary of Trade and Industry. I
understand after I left it hasn't been continued so I’m asking Secretary
Favila to revive the G 11 (Applause). President Arranza, congratulations
also and thank you for all of the many ways by which FTI partners to the
government as you enumerated in your speech. Members of the federation,
directors of the federation, member corporations and industry associations,
Congressman Monico Puentebella, ladies and gentlemen: I am glad to address the champions of Philippine industry. Ito addressed you as captains but I prefer to addressed you as champions because you work very hard to make sure that Philippine industry is not left behind (Applause). And as Jess Arranza said in his speech, enumerated, you are indispensable partners in development as well as in security. So let me begin by giving you a report on our security situation. Even as I speak, our government forces are in a full offensive against terrorist cells in Sulu. I have ordered the Commanding General of the Philippine Army Romeo Tolentino to pitch camp in Zamboanga. Tolentino will oversee that theatre of operations. I am sending my army chief to the frontlines so he can be near my soldiers. The Army Headquarters is temporarily set up NOW in the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga until the situation normalizes. Tolentino is about to retire but he has been a soldier’s soldier, so this soldier's soldier will not just orchestrate punitive actions against those who maim and kill but study the peaceful overtures of those who will demonstrate remorse. As I said he is about to retire and usually at this stage of the Philippine armed forces career, retiring three-star generals do their farewell tour. Well, this will be Tolentino’s farewell tour but not his last assignment. Because he will spend his last days in service in the place and the way it began: in Mindanao as the defender of the flag in a mission of peace. In addition, this morning I issued the following security directives: First, keep Basilan and Sulu operations firmly controlled to minimize civilian casualties, with NDCC help in evacuating them, and respect ceasefire guidelines in close consultation with the International Monitoring Team, whose mandate we should seek to be extended before it expires next month, and with the GRP-MILF ceasefire committee. Second, hold urgent talks with the MILF under the Malaysian auspices to contain and resolve the Basilan/Sulu situation, making it clear that the government has to secure its forces and areas as part of peace efforts and law enforcement, but will not overrun MILF areas. Third, brief the OIC Committee of Eight on Mindanao developments, underlining both the limited military operations and the continuing peace and development efforts, including huge outlays in the 2007 and 2008 budgets for Mindanao, including Basilan and Sulu. Next, harness the Bishops-Ulama Conference and other religious and civil society groups for peace efforts, and the other civil society groups include your federation with myself and other national leaders joining them in prayers and peace rally in Mindanao, and meeting with them on the need to work together for peace and against forces and ideologies promoting violence. Next, accelerate the development initiatives in ARRM, especially high-profile public works and social programs, including health, housing, livelihood and Muslim education. If it would not adversely affect the Philippine negotiating position and provoke alarm among Christians, a pilot implementation of the envisioned Muslim ancestral domain regime shall be undertaken, to demonstrate our sincerity to achieve peace. We have declared many ancestral domains among indigenous peoples, I really don't see why anybody should be scared if there is an ancestral domain declared for the Muslim people. Then also, hold the first peace and security assembly in Bohol. This should happen on the 23rd and 24th of August. And elsewhere, to wind down insurgency in other areas, further demonstrating the government’s peace resolve while freeing up troops in case they would be needed in Mindanao. I give you this report because national security and political stability are the foundations of a strong economy. So, today I am here to ask you first, to help me appeal to all not to exploit the peace and security issues and initiatives for politicking. After all many of the champions of industry here are very important political supporters as well. And second, to harness private sector support for revenue and anti-smuggling efforts. I have been looking forward to meeting with major business chambers to call on you to work with government in boosting tax collection and fighting smuggling, which is a major complaint of top business leaders. And it's a good time to start with you because your federation, that's why I call you champions of industry. Your federation has especially been active in anti-smuggling advocacy to protect Philippine industry and Philippine labor. (Applause) We take the shortfall in revenue collection by the BIR and the BOC seriously. We have taken immediate steps to address this. We remain committed to the implementation of our economic reform agenda. The measures we are taking to improve the efficiency of the revenue-enhancing agencies are enabling us to increase revenue collection and get our collection efforts back on track. We also remain committed to doing everything necessary to maintain the economic delivery (recovery) that has delivered 26 consecutive quarters of economic growth and that is enabling us to invest in modern infrastructure and much needed social services. (Applause) Let us put the shortfall into context. We were not on target for the first half of this year but we have met our target for July. This shows that we knew what has to be done to get back on target. This shows that we have been taking the required actions. And if you remember in 2006 our dedication and discipline to raise revenues led to 20-percent growth in revenues from the previous year. Revenues from collection efficiency and tax administration reforms alone reached 41 billion pesos in 2006 about seven-tenths percent (0.7%) of GDP – higher than the conservative plan of one-third percent (0.3%). We have demonstrated our ability to meet the challenges of revenue generation. And we are confident that we will succeed again in this instance. Let me describe some of the actions we have taken and will take to address this situation. We have asked our senior team to take responsibility for the actions of their agencies. We have made tough decisions regarding organization and leadership. We're vigorously implementing Actions Plans with the BIR and the BOC with the support from our development partners and our industry partners like you to improve tax collection efficiency. Some of these measures include holding separate command conferences in the BIR, which I will hold after coming from here and the BOC which we held last Friday, reviewing performance and transferring or at least warning poor performers among revenue district officers and port collectors. To get the complete Customs picture, last Friday we did a section-by-section dissection of the revenue output of two major ports, the Port of Manila and the Manila International Container Port. Fifty-five centavos for every peso raised by the BOC come from these ports. The transaction value (volume) in these ports is so huge that a mere section of the Port of Manila has the collection equivalent of most ports outside the National Capital Region. If that is the case, I found it more productive for us to scrutinize the performance of the 15 sections in each of the two ports rather than waste time evaluating the yield of, say, the port of Surigao. Port of Manila and MICP section officials are more vital than a collector of a backwater port. To pinpoint responsibility in collection slippage it does us well to go beyond port-level performance and dissect how each of the sections fare. I am forming a revenue enhancement task force under Secretary Gary Teves and an anti-smuggling task force under the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group under the National Competitiveness Council. This will be similar to the anti-red tape task force under Secretary Peter Favila. I invite the Federation of Philippine Industries to join the anti-smuggling task force. Together, let us continue to pursue peace and explore new horizons of Filipino competitiveness, more partnerships and reforms. |
