Noy justifies removal of Mandanas

MANILA, Philippines - Batangas Rep. Hermilando Mandanas was not fired as chairman of the House ways and means committee because he did not sign the impeachment complaint against Corona, but because his positions on various proposals oppose that of the majority, President Aquino said yesterday. 

“Ayaw niyang sumang-ayon, eh ‘di pasensyahan tayo (He wouldn’t agree with the majority; he must bear it),” Aquino told reporters in a chance interview after the signing of the 2012 budget in Malacañang Palace.

Mandanas, a member of the President’s Liberal Party, confirmed that he was dismissed from his post.

The President cited, for instance, Mandanas’ proposal to include the value added tax (VAT) on imports to the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of local government units.

Mandanas had repeatedly pushed for the collection scheme despite being contrary to the position of the Palace that such proposal should be first decided by the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Internal Revenue. At present, the IRA is sourced from taxes.   

Aquino said the VAT on imports for IRA had been replaced by other taxes under the 1991 Local Government Code. He argued that Mandanas’ proposal would cost the government some P500 billion.                                

“The bottomline is he’s not pushing for what the coalition wants. So why chair a committee, what’s the point, if you are different from the majority. That’s the only point there, it has nothing do with the impeachment,” Aquino said of Mandanas. 

He said the decision of the lawmakers to support the impeachment of Corona was entirely their own.

On allegations that the lawmakers were not able to read the impeachment complaint, Aquino said: “I am sure that there was a caucus and there was a discussion of the various articles of the impeachment.”