MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday urged the public “to pay the correct amount of taxes on time” to support the country’s economic recovery and expansion.
At the launch of the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) national tax campaign in Pasay City, Marcos called on the public to cooperate and collaborate with the government to improve the country’s tax collection system.
“I encourage the public to pay the correct amount of taxes on time to support the country’s economic recovery and expansion so critical in this time,” he said in his speech during the event.
“It is my confidence that you will continue to cooperate, collaborate, and coordinate with the government on how to improve the experience of our tax collection system,” he added.
Marcos has assured the public that his administration would consistently use taxes to benefit everyone.
Marcos also praised the BIR’s efforts in digitalizing transactions and increasing the enforcement of tax regulations.
He called on the taxation agency to uphold the highest standards of integrity and professional service to boost public confidence in the country’s taxation system.
For his part, BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. vowed to stay vigilant in punishing tax evaders. The bureau is actively enforcing legislation to make sure everyone pays what they owe, he said.
“We will continue to go after illicit traders. We will charge producers and users of fake receipts,” Lumagui added.
In December 2021, the BIR sent a demand letter to Marcos to pay their estate tax dues which amounted to about P203 billion from about P23 billion in 1998.
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A Supreme Court ruling showed that the Marcoses’ estate tax assessment of P23 billion became “final and executory” in March 1999.
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Marcos and his mother, Imelda, are co-administrators of the estate left by the Marcos patriarch, former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., who died in Hawaii on September 29, 1989.
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In September 2022, Marcos said his family’s P203-billion unpaid estate taxes should be reopened, saying they were never allowed to argue about the case.