President Rodrigo Duterte. Screengrab from PCOO / Facebook
MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the proposal to not suspend the excise tax on fuel products and instead give a P200-per-month subsidy to poor families, Malacañang said Wednesday.
This was the proposal of the Department of Finance amid the rising prices of fuel, saying this is a more equitable response rather than suspending excise tax on fuel, which would only benefit “richer people” who have cars.
“Inaprubahan ng Pangulo ang dalawang rekomendasyon ng DOF kaugnay sa pagtaas ng fuel price: una pag-retain ng fuel excise taxes at pagbibigay ng targeted subsidies na P200 bawat household to the bottom 50% of Filipino households,” acting presidential spokesman Martin Andanar said in a Palace briefing.
(The President has approved two recommendations of the DOF regarding the rising fuel prices: one is retaining the fuel excise taxes and the giving of P200-per-month subsidy to the bottom 50% of Filipino households.)
The DOF had reasoned that suspending excise tax on fuel provided under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion or TRAIN law will result in a loss of P105.9-billion worth of income which
would be used to fund several administration programs.