MALACAÑANG says: ‘Noynoy’s no tax vow is empty promise’

By Aytch S. de la Cruz (The Daily Tribune) Jan 23, 2010
http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100123hed1.html 
 

Look at his eyes instead of reading his lips. Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino will raise taxes, if he gets to Malacañang.

The Palace yesterday scored the Liberal Party presidential candidate over his vow made before businessmen at the Makati Business Club forum on the presidential candidates that he will not be imposing new taxes nor increase tax rates.

Deputy Presidential Spokesman Gary Olivar yesterday intimated that which Aquino had pledged about not introducing new taxes nor increasing the tax rates are empty promises, as well as insinuate that one of the first things Aquino will be doing is to raise taxes, to fill up the deficit which is expected to run to some P270 to P300 billion next year.

Olivar pointed out that Aquino had aped former President George H. Bush who said during his acceptance of the Republican nomination for the presidency: “Read my lips. No new taxes,” as a way of courting more votes.

While Bush won his election and became president, Bush raised taxes in a bid to curb the  budget deficit. Aquino was quoted as saying to the members of the MBC that he would be pursuing the rationalization of fiscal incentives given to investors as part of efforts to plug revenue leaks and lower the budget deficit.

“We will refrain from imposing new taxes or increasing tax rates,” Aquino told the business forum. “I strongly believe that we can collect more taxes at the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) and higher duties at Customs if we become more serious in curbing and punishing tax evasion and smuggling,” he said, adding that lower taxes are his vision to transform the country.

He said he wants lower tax rates as this would be “enjoyed by all, rather than have some enjoy absolute tax exemptions while we burden the rest of the economy with the very high tax rates.”

Olivar, who is also an economist, said Aquino is risking his credibility by way of running an “overenthusiastic campaign”by way of making promises that are quite difficult to achieve, given the deficit issues that any administration is always forced to contend with.

“When you promise no new taxes — as you said given our deficit issues — then you may risk what happened to the elder George Bush when he made the same promise of “read my lips” during his campaign and then I think less than a year later he raised the taxes due to the heavy pressure on the (budget) deficit at that time. It is the same today in the country at this time (of budget deficits). So it is really difficult to come out and say there is no more problem of a deficit.

“Secondly, when he (Aquino) made that kind of a promise before an audience such as the business community that wants to hear something like this, then one might be accused of pandering to the choir and that is something that a president ought not to be doing,” Olivar said.

Olivar also reminded candidates vying for the presidency, among whom is Aquino, to make sure they make promises within their reach because it is so unfair to the public that the people are being constantly fed only with words during campaigns with no assurance of an end-result.

“It is really not wise to come up with a promise of not imposing new taxes on the one hand and not to increase tax rates on the other hand. In fact, some of our party allies have already cautioned President Arroyo on the deficit, since this is getting bigger and the foreign debt, as a result, is also getting bigger. You cannot speak out on both sides of the mouth at the same time,” Olivar stressed.

Olivar, however, clarified that he was not trying to stress the point that Aquino has insufficient knowledge on the different issues involving various national concerns, which many believe is a manifestation of his unpreparedness for the biggest public responsibility that he is trying to seek.

“Let us be charitable and ascribe it (Aquino’s behavior in answering issues) to an excess of enthusiasm during the campaign period,” he said.

It was only about a couple of weeks ago when Aquino first underwent severe criticism not only from the Palace but the different legal luminaries as well when he issued a warning to the high court not to recognize a chief justice who will be appointed by Arroyo and threatened to fire any associate justice who accepts an appointment from Arroyo.

Meanwhile, in an earlier interview with Arroyo herself over radio dzRH, she said her decision to increase the tax rates is among those tough decisions she was proud of doing no matter how negative the public reception has been toward this.

She said increasing the tax rates was very instrumental in accumulating funds for the government’s numerous projects and it also enabled them to somehow cut the country’s deficit and fluctuating foreign debt.

“Even when it was a difficult decision to make, I needed to do it, as as leader, because a leader has to fix up the fiscal situation by increasing taxes, in order to have funds. There is need to borrow funds, because the taxes are not enough to fund the budget,” Arroyo said.

Meanwhile, at the very site of the infamous Jan. 22, 1987 peasant massacre which claimed the lives of 13 farm workers and injuring scores more, Deputy Minority Leader, Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo challenged presidential aspirant Senator Aquino to take responsibility for and rectify the errors of his mother, former president Corazon Aquino.

“Senator Aquino has been citing the lives and legacies of his parents to the Filipino people as a sort of guarantee that he will be a good president. Given this, he should then admit and take  stock of the failure of former President Aquino to implement a genuine agrarian reform program. It has been 22 years since the Mendiola Massacre, but justice still eludes the victims and the survivors. Majority of the the country’s farmers remain landless and impoverished,” said Ocampo.

“Filipino farmers challenge Senator Aquino to rectify this. Can he and will he take a stand for genuine agrarian reform? Up to now the struggle between the Hacienda Luisita farmers and the Cojuangco family remain unsettled, and Senator Aquino has issued nothing but platitudes,” he added.

Ocampo issued this statement during the culmination of the ‘Lakbayan ng Anakpawis para sa Lupa’t Katarungan sa 2010\' which began in Davao on Jan. 12. Some 7,000 farmers participated in the historic lakbayan.

“Social injustice is a state policy with the incumbent government under Arroyo. More than seven out of 10 farmers are deprived of land. Farmers are modern-day slaves of big land owners and transnational corporations which own vast tracts of agricultural lands- turned into cash crop plantations,” said Ocampo.

“Can Senator Aquino do more than his mother did and include in his campaign platform the promise of giving land to the landless?”

Ocampo also challenged Aquino to support the demand of farmers for the immediate implementation of a genuine and thorough-going agrarian reform program; to stop eviction of farmers; to stop land grabbing.

For his part, Anakpawis party-list Rep. Joel Maglunsod said yesterday’s rally highlights important events in the Philippine history -- the Mendiola massacre that symbolized the farmers’ decades-old struggle for land and emancipation and People Power ll that showed the people’s collective capability to end an unpopular government.”

The solon said “the upcoming May 2010 national election is also a vital turning point in the long-awaited “regime change” worked for by Filipinos for the past nine years. But this regime change must go beyond the customary transfer of power from one representative of the ruling elite to another. There should be significant social reforms that will genuinely benefit the population.

“The struggle for land, social justice and genuine social change remain significant and these are the crucial issues that must be addressed by anyone who wants to serve the country.

“We are also sending a strong message to those who are eyeing the presidency --continuing the pro-foreign, anti-national and anti-democratic policies espoused by previous administrations will not work anymore. The people demand for genuine change and a 180 degree turn from the current status quo.”

Among the changes that we want to see in the next administration is the rescinding of policies burdening basic social sectors. The junking of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program with reforms (Carper), Oil Deregulation Law and the wage freeze policy implemented by the Arroyo administration are just a few of the people’s demands, Maglunsod said.

Charlie V. Manalo