Pharmally's Mago 'clueless' on her invalid TIN

Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation official Krizle Grace Mago said Tuesday that she is clueless about the report from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), which indicated that her Tax Identification Number (TIN) is invalid.

At the continuation of the hearing of the Senate blue ribbon committee on the COVID-19 supply procurement, Senator Richard Gordon showed a letter from BIR Commissioner Caesar Dulay to Blue Ribbon Oversight Management Office which stated  that there were no records of Mago's TIN.

"You have found, however, from the documents obtained from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that Ms. Mago's TIN number is 702-911-769-000. Relative hereto, you are requesting for the profile details of the taxpayer using the abovementioned TIN," read the letter.

"In reply, please be informed that upon verification with the Bureau's Integrated Tax System (ITS), Internal Revenue Integrated System (IRIS) and REG System, we reiterate our earlier findings that there are no records available for Krizle Grace Mago. This only shows that said taxpayer is not registered with the BI. Verification also discloses that TIN 702- 911-769-000 is an invalid TIN," it added.

After reading the letter, Mago said she used the TIN when she got hired at Pharmally but had no idea that it was invalid.

"Mr. Chairman, if I remember it correctly, my TIN was registered by my first job yung company po, that Korean company. They are paying my taxes po as a salary employee this is also the tax identification number that I provided to Pharmally once I got employed. I believe they are paying my taxes through this TIN number,"  said Mago.

"I also don't know why invalid ang TIN number is ko but please allow me to check kung bakit invalid yung TIN (why the TIN was invalid)," she added.

Gordon then asked if she used the "invalid" TIN to represent Pharmally in corporate engagements.

Mago replied that she wanted to check first with her first job who handled her TIN.

"I am actually clueless Mr. Chairman but please allow me to check but let me check with my first company," Mago said.

Mago also said she has "no intention to register an invalid TIN."

But Gordon stressed that there was nothing to "double check" as it was already the BIR that declared Mago's TIN was not valid.

"This is the BIR, the highest officer of BIR and they are saying you registered an invalid TIN number. Why would you do that? In a company under a serious investigation or defrauding the government of much money that is supposed to go to the people of the country suffering from pandemic," said Gordon, who was already frustrated with Mago.

At the end of their exchange, Mago said she will submit a copy of a BIR form to prove that she is paying her taxes.

Mago became controversial after admitting under oath at the Senate hearing last September that she changed expiration dates of government-procured face shields.

But she later retracted her confession and sought protective custody from the House of Representatives.

She claimed her admission that Pharmally swindled  the government when it tampered with the expiration dates was a pressured response. —LDF, GMA News