Lawmakers gift selves with billions in add’l ‘pork’

MANILA, Philippines - Senators and congressmen gifted themselves with billions in additional pork barrel funds before approving the final version of the sin tax bill two weeks ago.

They inserted in the reconciled version of the bill a new provision allocating a large part of additional revenues from higher taxes on tobacco and alcohol products to congressional districts nationwide.

The new provision was carried in Republic Act 10351, the revised sin tax law, which President Aquino signed Wednesday last week.

It states: “After deducting the allocations under Republic Act Nos. 8240 and 7171, 80 percent of the remaining balance of the incremental revenue shall be allocated for universal health care under the national health insurance program, the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and health awareness programs; and 20 percent shall be allocated nationwide, based on political and district subdivisions, for medical assistance and health enhancement facilities, the annual requirements of which shall be determined by the Department of Health.”

RA 7171, entitled, “An Act to promote the development of the farmers in the Virginia-tobacco producing provinces,” was enacted on Jan. 9, 1992.

It allocates 15 percent of all revenues from cigarettes using Virginia tobacco to provinces producing such leaf raw material.

RA 8240, on the other hand, amended certain provisions of the National Internal Revenue Code, effecting small adjustments in the tax rates on tobacco and alcohol products. It was enacted on Nov. 22, 1996.

Such rates have been frozen since then, or for more than 16 years, until Aquino signed RA 10351 last week.

Under RA 8240, 15 percent of total collections from the small adjustments is allocated to tobacco-producing provinces.

According to the authors of the new sin tax bill, some P34 billion in additional revenues would be raised from higher tobacco and alcohol taxes next year.

Of that amount, 15 percent or P5.1 billion would be set aside for programs that would benefit tobacco farmers.

Of the remaining P28.9 billion, 80 percent or P23.12 billion would go to the state-owned Philippine Health Insurance Corp., the attainment of MDGs and health awareness programs.

The balance of 20 percent or P5.78 billion would be allocated among “political and district subdivisions for medical assistance and health enhancement facilities program.”

This means that the P5.78 billion, which would increase in succeeding years as collections go up, would be funds that lawmakers could access for medical assistance for constituents and funds for the improvement of hospitals and other health facilities in their districts.

The amount would constitute additional pork barrel funds, on top of the annual P25-billion Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) in the annual budget.

The PDAF allots P70 million for each member of the House of Representatives and P200 million for each senator.

House members and senators allot a large part of their annual funds for medical assistance, giving the money to government hospitals where they refer constituents needing medical attention.

The allocation for congressional districts in the sin tax law is similar to a provision in the law imposing the so-called motor vehicle user’s charge (MVUC) on millions of motor vehicle owners.

Part of MVUC collections constitutes pork barrel funds, which lawmakers could access.

In fact, there were audit findings in the past that so-called road improvement projects undertaken by several congressmen using billions in MVUC money have disappeared.

These projects were mostly guardrails, cat’s eye metal markers like those that pockmarked the entire stretch of Edsa and Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City, sealants that crews apply on the road surface and then cover with sand, and other road markers.