‘GO ahead.”
With confidence, Malacañang has told critics of the tax-reform bill to bring the matter to the Supreme Court (SC) if they want to. The Palace was also smug enough to say SC justices will certainly side with the government.
In a radio interview over the weekend, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin M. Andanar said the government is open to arguing the legitimacy of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill with militant lawmakers. The measure was ratified by Congress last Wednesday.
However, Party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani T. Zarate of Bayan Muna said he and fellow members of the militant Makabayan bloc will challenge the approval of the Train before the SC. He claimed the measure was railroaded by Congress, as it was ratified in spite of the overwhelming absence of legislators in the plenary.
“Karapatan niya ’yan as a congressman [That is his right as a congressman]. He represents a certain sector of our society,” Andanar said.
“But, you know, ang mahalaga ’ho dito ay pumasa na ’ho ito sa Senado, at ganoon din po diyan sa Lower House [What is important here is that the bill was already ratified by the Senate, as well as in the Lower House]. And, if he wants to question it, then let the magistrates decide for themselves if his questions are really valid,” he added.
Last week congressmen approved the tax-reform bill even as majority of them were not in the House of Representatives to personally ratify the measure. They were in a luxury hotel in Pasay City at that time to attend the PDP-Laban benefit dinner for Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.
Zarate said it is just right to challenge the legitimacy of the Train in the high court. He argued the House violated its own rules on quorum when it ratified the measure without the attendance of lawmakers.
“There were only fewer than 20 members present when the wrecker TRAIN was railroaded. This is a blatant violation of our rules, which provide that the measure shall be ratified by a majority vote of the members of the House present, there being a quorum,” the lawmaker said.
The TRAIN is the first package of the Duterte administration’s comprehensive tax-reform program. The bicameral version of the bill exempts workers earning P250,000 and lower from paying personal- income tax.
On the other hand, it will impose taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) at P6 per liter for those with caloric and noncaloric sweeteners, and P12 per for those with high- fructose corn syrup. Milk and 3-in-1 coffee are exempted from the SSB tax.
The TRAIN will also impose increasing excise taxes per year on petroleum products. As for liquified petroleum gas, diesel and gasoline, which are used mostly by households, minimal increases will be applied.
The value-added tax (VAT) threshold was also expanded from P1.9 million to P3 million to benefit those in the micro, small and medium enterprises. VAT exemptions are retained for senior citizens, persons with disabilities, cooperative and zero-rating for renewable energy, tourism and business-process outsourcing in special economic zones.