Senator Grace Poe on Sunday pressed for the immediate suspension of the excise tax on fuel, saying that the time to do it is “now or sooner.”
Poe was among the 17 senators who asked President Rodrigo Duterte, through a letter dated October 9, 2018, to support the proposed suspension of the said tax in Congress.
READ: 17 senators ask Duterte to support suspension of excise tax on fuel
“The time to suspend the excise tax increase is now or sooner, not in January 2019,” she said in a statement.
“That is per se allowed as a safeguard in the TRAIN Law under RA 10963,” she said.
Under the law, the government can only suspend the tax on fuel if international prices of the Dubai crude reach an average of $80 per barrel for three consecutive months.
Poe pointed out that in the legislation, the people’s welfare should come first.
“Kung lalong nakapagpapahirap sa tao, i-suspend agad (If it will make life harder for people, suspend it),” she said.
The senator lamented how the poor have become poorer and how inflation has made the people’s lives more difficult.
“Huge spikes in prices of basic commodities and oil prices are substantial ─ all indications of greater poverty,” she said.
As chair of the Senate committee on public services, Poe had conducted public hearings in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao to find out the effects of the Train law.
Poe expressed gratitude that their plea to suspend the excise tax is reportedly now being considered by President Rodrigo Duterte himself.
“Salamat kung pinakinggan at nadama ito ng Pangulo (We are grateful that the President is considering this),” she further said. /ee