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Salceda: No new taxes until end of Duterte's term, but...


A lawmaker on Monday said there will be no new taxes to be implemented in the remaining years of President Rodrigo Duterte's leadership, but said Congress could push for tax measures that would take effect in the next administration.

During the preliminary deliberations on the general appropriations bill, Albay Representative Joey Salceda said that Congress could approve new tax measures but defer the implementation until July 2022.

"Ang patakaran po ng gobyerno sa ngayon ay wala pong bagong taxes na mai-implement between now and 2022, pero hindi ibig sabihin na hindi natin puwedeng aprubahan ang mga buwis na puwedeng mabigay ng armas," he said during the preliminary deliberations.

"Kailangan din nating paghandaan na 'yung susunod na gobyerno. Siya po ang haharap sa lahat po ng mga napakalalaking gastos sa laki ng nawala, trilyon-trilyon na nawala po na revenues," he added.

According to Salceda — chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means and vice chairman of the Committee on Appropriations — said new measures are needed to finance loan repayment.

"I think the policy predisposition is really not to impose new taxes or to collect or exact new taxes, but merely to defer these taxes to a certain — sa isang panahon po na unang-una, pili," he said.

"I guess as a policy advice to the government, perhaps ilalagay po doon na that the implementation shall be effective on July 1, 2022 to give the next President," added Salceda.

As of September 18, 2020, the Department of Finance (DOF) has raised a total of $8.79 billion in budgetary support financing from the ADB, World Bank, AIIB, AFD, JICA, and USD-denominated global bonds as response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Para mabuhay ang ekonomiya, kailangan ng resources at ang resources po ay hindi libre, hindi napupulot sa kalsada, so samakatuwid kailangan mo po 'tong hiramin, so darating ang panahon na kailangan mong bayaran," said Salceda.

"Magkano na ba ang pinag-uutang natin? Sangkatutak na, eh darating ang panahon, kailangan bayaran mo 'yan," he added. —KBK, GMA News

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