Resort resumes operation 2 hours after closure

Updated @ 11:41 p.m., Nov. 27, 2018

PANGLAO, Bohol — A resort hotel here was back in business less than two hours after it was ordered closed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Tuesday.

The 400-room Bohol Hennan Resort (BHR) on Alona Beach resumed operations after paying its tax obligation to the BIR, its lawyer said.

The closure sign, which was displayed by the BIR at the entrance of the resort’s convention center, had been taken down, said Alan Siu, the company’s legal counsel.

Delayed
He said the company had been delayed in paying its taxes. He declined to disclose the amount that the resort paid.

Eduard Pagulayan, BIR director for Central Visayas, implemented the closure order on BHR at past 11 a.m. on Tuesday, citing the company’s failure to declare its total income.

“Their (Bohol Hennan Resort Inc.) gross receipt is underdeclared by more than 30 percent. That’s the violation,” Pagulayan said.

He did not say how much Hennan owed the government, but noted that the amount was “substantial.”

Hennan was the first hotel in Bohol province that had been ordered closed by the BIR since it started implementing “Oplan Kandado,” a government program aimed at ensuring tax compliance and imposing heavy penalties on offenders.

Strong message

The BIR’s surveillance on BHR began in September after it noticed discrepancies in the resort’s tax declaration.

The BIR sent a 48-hour notice of violation and notice of compliance to BHR but the management failed to reply, prompting the agency to order the closure.

“This is a strong message that they should pay their taxes religiously,” Pagulayan said.

“We should help our government because we need funds for the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program of our President. We must pay the correct taxes,” he added.