Corrupt officials to face tax raps

MANILA, Philippines - The government’s fiscal team led by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima is prepared to pursue tax evasion cases against personalities in the previous administration linked to corruption cases by the Truth Commission.

Purisima said the Aquino administration’s campaign against tax evaders and smugglers would not discriminate against anybody, including former officials of the Arroyo administration.

“Through the Truth Commission, we can investigate tax evasion,” Purisima said in a roundtable discussion with editors and reporters of The STAR the other night.

He said there would be no exception when it comes to enforcing the country’s tax laws. The tougher tax drive is aimed at significantly boosting revenue collection and reining in the government’s runaway budget deficit.

Last month, President Aquino signed his first executive order creating the Truth Commission to investigate alleged anomalies during the nine-year administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

According to the Palace, Executive Order No. 1 aims to begin “the process of bringing necessary closure to the allegations of official wrongdoing and impunity.”

Former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. has been named to head the commission, which will have four members and whose mandate will last until December 2012.

It was Mr. Aquino’s campaign promise to prosecute officials of the Arroyo administration involved in corruption.

Among the biggest controversies that hounded Arroyo’s nine-year term were the “Hello, Garci” wiretapping scandal and the botched $329-million national broadband network deal with China’s ZTE Corp.

Purisima said there might also be tax evasion cases committed by officials of the previous administration.

Purisima said he has already instructed the Bureau of Internal Revenue to look into the income tax returns of rice traders and former officials of the National Food Authority, who might have been responsible for the reported excessive rice importation.

The over-importation might have caused the NFA’s debt to swell from P28 billion in 2003 to P171 billion last May, according to officials. Earlier, the new NFA leadership announced its discovery of tons of rice imports rotting in warehouses.

The Aquino administration has been filing cases against tax evaders and smugglers almost every week to send signal to the public that it is serious about punishing tax delinquents.

The government hopes to keep the budget deficit ceiling at P325 billion this year or 3.9 percent of gross domestic product and at P300 billion or 3.3 percent of GDP in 2011.