Duterte: Gov't to accept Mighty Corp.'s P25-B tax settlement

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said the government will accept the P25 billion tax settlement of cigarette manufacturer Mighty Corporation.

"I have directed the Department of Finance and the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) to accept Mighty Corporation's offer of P25 billion to settle its tax liability," Duterte said during his second State of the Nation Address.

Mighty's offer includes the deficiency excise taxes and internal revenue taxes of the company and its shareholders. The company is facing multiple raps for tax evasion.

Duterte said the amount may be used to cover the cost for the rehabilitation of strife-torn Marawi City and quake-hit Ormoc City.

"After the settlement, Mighty will no longer have to engage in the tobacco business. This will be the biggest tax settlement on record," he said.

"It will produce a windfall for the government, which is significant since we are to face the cost of rebuilding Marawi and Ormoc," he added.

Duterte, however, noted that the settlement will not "preclude all [of Mighty's] criminal charges ... and that the BIR may decide to fight."

"The settlement will allow the government to avoid a long battle that, as we saw in the previous year, would take years to resolve," he added. —JST/KVD, GMA News