Drilon: Iloilo’s progress possible for whole country

MANILA-Progress amid problems can be done with political will and effective partnerships, Senate President Franklin M. Drilon said, stressing that the significant developments made by Iloilo within a short period of time is proof that economic recovery and the achievement of developmental goals is indeed possible for the country.

The Senate leader, an Ilonggo native and a staunch supporter of the province, lauded the many signs of Iloilo’s growth as he spoke before various business leaders who attended the Iloilo Business Forum held at the Hotel Intercontinental, Makati on Wednesday, March 12, 2014.

The event showcases massive infrastructure developments and projects which represent a highly-energized and proactive economic policy that Iloilo City, along with the entire province, has undertaken in the past seven years.  

In his speech, Drilon noted Iloilo’s rise from being a one of the provinces of the Visayan region with a gloomy economy to its current status as an economic dynamo poised to retake its spot as the premiere province on the entire southern part of the country. 

“lloilo’s decline came to a point where its seaport was once described as the “armpit” of the Visayas, where it severely lost its economic luster. It was plagued by pitiful public services, haphazard economic ploys and poor infrastructure. In fact, the title, ‘Queen City of the South’, which once belonged to Iloilo, was transferred to Cebu more than a hundred years ago because of this,” he said.   
 
However, the senator said that the combination of a “united and result-oriented political leadership, and a highly cooperative and effective partnership with members of the private sector in Iloilo has led to monumental reforms and policy improvements, thereby transforming its economic fortune.

“We knew our strengths: our strategic location; our vast pool of talent; our abundant natural resources; and, a growing consumer market. Thus to reduce poverty and make our economy grow, Iloilo’s leaders turned to strategic infrastructure development as a means to more investments, which means more jobs,” he explained.

According to Drilon, the immense political resolve and thorough cooperation with the business partners like the Iloilo Economic Development Foundation has paid off, in the form of greatly perceivable leaps in infrastructure and economic developments in the province.

“Once-decrepit structures like the Iloilo International Airport and major roads like the Senator Benigno Aquino Avenue have been vastly revamped, while fishing wharfs and shipping ports are being updated to globally-competitive standards. The Iloilo River Esplanade and the Iloilo Convention Center are set to bring in unprecedented levels of local and international tourism revenues for the province,” he said.    

He added: “Meanwhile, Iloilo’s woes regarding its power supply has been resolved, and is now one of the information and communications technology (ICT) hotspots in the country, while its rapid urbanization is attracting the full line-up of the country’s biggest real estate firms and consumer brands – such as the Ayala Group and the SM group of companies.” 

The Senate Chief also pointed to several big-ticket projects in Iloilo including the P11.2-billion Jalaur River Project, an infrastructure project expected to benefit 783,000 farmers in 25 of Iloilo's 42 municipalities, provide 17,000 jobs, and will eventually lead to the doubling of Iloilo’s rice production, from 142,000 to 300,000 tons annually.

The construction of a state-of-the-art convention center is part of a major campaign to improve the province’s capacity to host and accommodate international occasions such as 2015 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation ministerial meetings, and important domestic events.

There are also various ongoing road infrastructure projects which include the 14-kilometer, 4-lane Iloilo circumferential road, the 150-km Iloilo-Capiz-Aklan highway, and the widening of a 3-lined, 10-lane avenue. The projects are meant not only to relieve Iloilo of its traffic problems, but more importantly, to open hundreds of new areas for development.

“We will not stop pursuing our development goals because we want to show to the whole country that if it can be done in Iloilo, it can be done anywhere,” stressed Drilon.
 
“In Iloilo, we have proven that we can create change when we put our collective interests before our individual wants. In Iloilo, we are nurturing big dreams and are working hard to realize these dreams,” he emphasized.

Drilon said the developments in Iloilo can be applied in other parts of the country: “The story of Iloilo is not just the story of the Ilonggos. It is the story of Filipinos. This is the story of people who are determined to scale new heights of economic and social success.”

Lastly, Drilon expressed elation at the developments, which have “made Iloilo the 2nd most competitive city in the whole Philippines, and the number one in governance, as stated by the National Governance Council.”

In the 2013 SWS Survey of Enterprises on Corruption, Iloilo managers posted a satisfaction rating of 83 percent, the second highest, in terms of the city government’s efforts to promote a good business climate. Likewise, of the seven (7) areas outside of NCR that were surveyed, Iloilo businessmen are the most positive at 86 percent  calling their business prospects either good or excellent, ahead of Angeles City, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Cebu and Davao. 

Soldiers, PNP, community to file Human Rights case vs NPA in Abra

BALER, Aurora-Soldiers together with local police and community residents are set to file Human Rights Violation case against the NPA remnants tagged in the brutal murder of an ex-NPA and his father and brother in a remote village in Abra whose bodies bearing torture marks and hands tied behind their bakcs were discovered last March 7 and recovered the following day.

            The case will be filed in the CHR regional office in Baguio City by the 41^st Infantry Battalion, PNP and barangay officials of Dominglay in Licuan-Baay, Abra as soon as the paperworks are complete.

            It may be recalled that three dead bodies were found by soldiers, police and barangay officials in a grave which was reported by civilians victims of NPA remnants between barangay Mugao and Dominglay in Licuan-Baay, Abra at about 4:30pm last March 7.

            According to the SOCO report, the bodies belonging to Fredie Ligiw, 30 years old, Licuben Ligiw, 68 years old and Eddie Ligiw bore torture marks with their hands tied behind their backs and with their mouths tied with handkerchiefs. According to the report the cause of death is mauling and asphyxiation.

            Based on the report of the local police and according to local residents the trio went missing on March 1 when about 15 NPA remnants were sighted in Sitio Sucao where the victims also live. Fredie Ligiw was last seen by civilian populace on March 3 at Sitio Manapnap, Brgy Binasaran, Malibcong, Abra being accompanied by NPA remnants under Flores Baluga alias Bram, the First Deputy Secretary of Abra Party Committee. This prompted Brgy Captain Josephine Carino to report the matter on March 6 and a search party was organized.

            Fredie Ligiw is a former NPA who surrendered in 2011 who wants to live a peaceful life while his brother Eddie is a community worker who is one of the proponents of the Daycare Center in their village. Their father Licuben is described by the village folks as a protective father.

            The murder of the Abra trio by the NPA remnants is reminiscent of the murder of another trio in Davao City murdered in 2009, the Lumad Tulang brothers. The elder Tulang was shot on the head while his two siblings were blindfolded, hogtied and their necks were slit and were left to bleed to death. All three bore signs of torture. Their crime: stealing fighting cocks.

            Back in Abra, records of several NPA victims are being reviewed so that cases may be filed. February 17, 2008 Ulysis Dapit of Sallapadan, Abra was abducted and murdered by the NPA; March 1998, emelio Brillantes of Malibcong, Abra was also abducted then murdered by NPA.

            Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM), Lieutenant General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said “the atrocious acts of the NPA remnants do not help the country and do not serve the interest of the people”.

“We have a more pressing concern now that is climate change and the magnified disasters it brings. This is the new enemy on the horizon. What we need to do is unite and embrace each other as one nation so that we can best protect our people from calamities”, Lt. Gen. Catapang concluded.

Rebel Returnee and Siblings found dead in Abra

Licuan-Baay, Abra – a former rebel identified as Fredie Ligiw 30 years old, together with his father Licuben Ligiw, 68 years old and brother Eddie Ligiw, 35 years old, a stakeholder in the construction of Daycare Center in So Manapnap, Barangay Binasaran, Malibcong, all residents of So. Sucao, Brgy Dominglay, Licuan-Baay, Abra  were found dead on March 8, 2014, They were reported missing for almost five (5) days with hands tied at their backs and buried when they were unearthed.

            Fredie Ligiw was last seen by the civilian populace at So Manapnap, Brgy Binasaran, Malibcong Abra last March 3, 2014. According to them, they were accompanied by the group of NPA remnants under Flores Baluga @ Bram, the first deputy secretary of Abra Party Committee (APCOM) during the conduct of a meeting at said place.

           

Freddie Z. Ligiw and his son.

These summary executions by the NPA remnants are their proverbial acts to any person or even to their comrades suspected as Army supporters. Mr Ulysis B. Dapit alyas Asunta, an innocent civilian from Brgy Sallapadan Bario, Sallapadan, Abra was a victim of this act on February 17, 2008. He was abducted and murdered by the NPA remnants and up to this date, justice has not been served. Also, Mr. Emelio Brillantes, a resident of Brgy Bayabas, Malibcong, Abra was also abducted and executed by the NPA sometimes in March 1998.

           

Photo of victim Eddie Z. Ligiw.

The investigation is still on progress and truth and justice must prevail. It’s high time for us to reflect and think sensibly, seek for justice against the perpetrators and the NPA remnants must be punished for the murders they have committed.

            The 41^st Infantry Battalion sympathized with the families of the victims and condemned the criminal acts of NPA remnants; armed struggle and killing of innocents civilians and suffering of the people in the province of Abra. Thus, we are calling for the support of all Abrenians, let us all unite and work together to end this violence once and for all for a peaceful and progressive Abra. 

CL farmers warn against flooding of rice imports, oppose liberalization of agri

SAN FERNANDO CITY, Pampanga-Farmers belonging to the Alyansa ng mga Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luson (Amgl, Farmers Alliance in Central Luzon), Aguman Dareng Maglalautang Capampangan (AMC) and Amgl – Nueva Ecija warned against flooding of imported rice in the region, citing it is a direct threat to rice-producing farmers who are already suffering low farm gate prices consequently putting them into indedtedness and landlessness.  The groups are reacting to the reported arrival of 525,000 bags of Vietnam rice in Subic freeport last January which they claim are now flooding the local market, thus traders use this as leverage to even depress farm gate prices of palay.  They blame this to the government's implementation of liberalizing the agricultural industry as commitment to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

“Imported rice from Vietnam and other countries are not helping us but actually undermining our capacity to produce our own rice.  If farmers face indebtedness and become land less, lands devoted to cultivating rice are to decline, putting us more dependent on imported rice.  Our food security is systematically degraded,” Aquilino Lopez, vice-chairperson of AMGL for external affairs and chair of Amgl – Nueva Ecija.

The groups said that during pre-WTO period of the data from Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS), imported rice only shared 2% of the total 41 million metric tons rice supply from 1990 to 1994, but jacked up to about 10% of 226.8 million metric tons supply from 1995 to 2012.  It is also noticeable that pre-WTO period rice buffer reached to 21% that  plunged to only 17% since WTO entry.  Thus, food security in rice was concretely degraded.  The groups said that the continuation of this trend would make the region and the country critically dependent on rice imports.

“Isn't in dense that our country's has the 8th largest rice production in 2009 but also imported the most in the world in 2010.  The country's policies and program are weakening our agriculture, thus, no different from putting the people into hunger and misery,” Lopez said.

The farmers are criticizing the statement of National Food Authority (NFA) regional director Amadeo De Guzman that the Vietnamese rice offloaded at Subic freeport was to augment the local supply in the region.  But the groups said that this totally contradicts the agency's mandate of supposedly promoting and protecting the locally-produced food supply.  The groups said that the Nueva Ecija province contributing the most among provinces at 9% of total produced palay in 2013 and Central Luzon contributing the biggest among regions more than 18% of the total produced palay are considered as country's rice granary but are being flooded by imported rice.

“The BS Aquino government, like its predecessors, the Dept. of Agriculture and NFA are drumming up rice self-sufficiency when it only means increasing rice imports and totally opposing rice food security.  This government abandoned protecting local production and diverting the country to becoming import-dependent on food, when an international crisis erupts disrupting importation, we are all going to die of starvation,” Lopez said.

The government obliged itself to import 350,000 metric tons of imported rice last year as commitment to the WTO according to the Dept. of Trade and Industry (DTI).  The groups also claimed that the 50,000 metric tons of smuggled rice reported by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to the senate investigation last January is adding salt to the wound.

“Smuggling is just a symptom of liberalizing agriculture.  The neo-liberal policies of WTO are supposed to implement the free-flow of goods, cancelling out state intervention, especially tariffs, thus, smuggling is just the advanced phase of    trade liberalization.  Fundamentally, we demand the revocation of government's effort to liberalization of agriculture and commitment to the WTO,” Lopez said.

Instead, the farmers groups demanded the implementation of genuine land reform to emancipate poor farmers from local landlords and traders monopolizing the rice industry.  The government should fulfill its duty to support and subsidy to local rice production as what other countries have implemented.

“We should oppose liberalization of agriculture and WTO as they only means starvation and misery for the people of Central Luzon,” Lopez said. 

GK, partners invite Central Luzon residents to its Bayanihan Run-For-A-Cause

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga-Gawad Kalinga (GK) along with its partners namely Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), city government of San Fernando, Human Nature Store and Philippine Information Agency (PIA) invite Central Luzon residents to join the Bayanihan Run-For-A-Cause that is slated on March 29 in the City of San Fernando.

 

“The activity, which is part of the two-day Bayanihan Festival, seeks to raise funds for the survivors of war and calamity in Visayas and Mindanao. 100% of the net proceeds will go to the construction of their houses,” GK Area Coordinator for Central Luzon Jon Ramos said.

 

GK Central Luzon shall likewise bring volunteers from all over the region to build the sponsored houses during the 2014 Bayani Challenge- a yearly gathering of volunteers who give the best of themselves and work together to build homes, repair schools, conduct health missions, plant trees, and many more.

 

The Run-For-A-Cause consists of varying distances at 1, 3, 5, and 10 kilometers with registration fee pegged at P100 (12 years old and below) and P200 (adult), P150 (student) and P200 (non-student), P300 (student) and P400 (non-student), and P400 (student) and P500 (non-student) respectively.

 

“2013 was a year that brought out the heroism of ordinary Filipinos, answering to the needs of our kababayans who were victims of the Zamboanga siege, Bohol earthquake and Super Typhoon Yolanda. The people of Region 3 can once again help them, this time, in their road to recovery and rehabilitation,” Ramos added.

 

Registration forms are available at the TIEZA office inside HILAGA Philippines (Paskuhan Village), City of San Fernando Tourism Office, PIA Regional Office, and Human Nature Store branch in the City of San Fernando (045-963-5958, 09326255339) and through the GK Provincial Coordinators in Pampanga (Justin-09321995003), Tarlac (James-09175142382), Nueva Ecija (Bebot-09209229211), Zambales (Peter-09175120021, 09209488919), Bulacan (Gil-09228520625), and Bataan (Edwin-09266808009, 09208643038).

 

For more information, please like the official Facebook pages of the event (BayanihanRunforaCause), GK Central Luzon and PIA Region 3 (PIA Gitnang Luzon).

 

Deadline of registration is on March 21. 

BIR urged to submit proposal to lower income tax rates before PNoy’s SONA

MANILA-While he welcomed the “openness” of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to lower income tax rates, Senator Juan Edgardo "Sonny" Angara expressed hope that the BIR proposal will be submitted sooner, possibly in July so that President Aquino can include it in the “wish list” that he will ask Congress to consider during his State of the Nation Address this year.

“The earlier it is submitted, the more time we can study it, and the better our bill will be,” said Angara, chair of the Senate ways and means committee.

“The dynamics in legislation is that it will take a year for a bill to be passed into law. So I think submitting it this July will fit just right in the congressional template of doing things,” he stressed.

“And, even if the BIR is thinking of a delayed effectivity date for the law, there is still merit on the idea of submitting its proposal way ahead," he added.

The senator said the tax agency should not treat its estimated annual revenue loss of P43 billion from reduced individual income rates as “unrecoverable.”

“If withholding tax is converted into disposable income, then it can be recouped through the VAT on goods. If part of the salary intended to be remitted to the BIR will now be spent for goods, then it can still be recaptured through the tax on the goods bought,” Angara explained.

“It will be also good for the economy. It is always better to plow money back in circulation, where it can stimulate the production and consumption of goods. Instead of government doing the spending for the people, let the people do the spending themselves,” he pointed out.

Angara is author of a bill compressing the net taxable income brackets from the present seven to five, and lowering tax rates across-the-board.

At present, an annual net income, after allowable deductions, of P10,000, which is the lowest in the tiers, is taxed 5 percent.

Under Angara’s Senate Bill 2149, the “no tax zone” will be raised to P20,000.

As to the next bracket under his proposal—from P20,000 to P70,000—he wants a tax of 15 percent in 2015, to go down to 13 percent in 2016, and further to 10 percent by 2017.

Currently, a net taxable income of between P30,000 and P70,000 is taxed P2,500 plus 15 percent of the amount over P30,000.

The neophyte senator is also proposing to slash the current highest tax bite of 32 percent for income above P500,000 to 22 percent by 2017.

Once enacted into law, Angara's bill will retain more money in paychecks of ordinary salaried workers.

“A policeman whose net taxable income is P150,000 at present pays P25,000 in income tax. Under my proposal, he will just pay P19,000 by 2017," he noted.

Citing another example, the lawmaker said a small business owner whose net taxable income is P550,000 a year will see his tax payment go down to P97,500 in 2017 from the present P141,000.

He emphasized that the smaller tax rates will lead to greater voluntary compliance.

“It will also attract human capital and to prevent the migration of our own to countries with lower tax rates and do not punish industry and productivity with onerous tax rates," Angara said. 

Exempt volunteer firetrucks from LTO fees - Recto

MANILA-To thank them for their services, government should waive vehicle registration fees of volunteer-owned fire trucks and place the brave men manning them under PhilHealth insurance.

Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto said at present, no incentives, “except perhaps for the token plaque of appreciation,” are given to volunteer firemen who put their lives on the line to save lives and property. 

Recto made the proposal as the nation marks Fire Prevention Month with a government grappling with the lack of fire trucks to respond to one distress call every 48 minutes.

Last year, fires cost P5.5 billion in damages to property.

Recto said the damage would have been bigger if not for volunteer fire trucks which in Metro Manila and in other big cities today outnumber the fleet operated by the Bureau of Fire Protection.

Because the law exempts no private motor vehicle from registration fees, Recto suggested that any of the cash-rich government corporations, like Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, foot the bill instead.

“It will be a good CSR project of Pagcor.  Pagcor supporting volunteer firetrucks – that’s a winning combination,” Recto said.

“The same applies to PhilHealth if it automatically enrolls members of volunteer firefighting brigades,” Recto added.  

Recto said if government will be spending P567billion in subsidies and financial aid to individuals and government corporations this year, then there is no reason why it cannot grant the same to volunteer fire brigades.   

“Kahit yung libreng LTO registration na lang, which will not exceed P20,000 per vehicle,baka yun na ang pwedeng equity ng gobyerno sa serbisyo ng mga volunteer firemen,” the senator said.

In addition to waiving LTO fees for fire trucks and providing health insurance to volunteer firemen, Recto said government should study the possibility of giving life insurance to volunteers.

“Magkano lang ba ang premium ng life insurance? It is small compared to the average P388,000 in annual total PS (personal services) cost per BFP employee,” he said.

In 2012, the government reported that 645 towns and cities do not have fire stations, while 666 others make do with only old and dilapidated fire trucks.

To reverse years of neglect, President Aquino earlier this month approved the release of P3.4 billion for the purchase of 300 fire trucks and the construction of 300 fire stations. 

Legarda: Build On the Gains of PHL’s Success in Women Empowerment

MANILA-In celebration of the International Women’s Day, Senator Loren Legarda today said that the country must build on the gains of its success in women empowerment, noting that the Philippines is number one among Southeast Asian nations in closing the gender gap.

"Filipino women are involved in all sectors of our society. In fact, they are present in more than a hundred countries around the world, caring for children and parents not their own, and operating businesses and industries as part of the force that drives the growth of the global community. We are sharing 10 million Filipinos with the rest of the world, and 60% of them are women,” said Legarda.

“This reality compels us to continuously search for measures that will protect our women at home and beyond,” she added.

The Senator said that the country has been improving on its women empowerment and gender equality initiatives as the implementation of related policies are improving through the years.

In November 2013, Legarda, on behalf of the Philippine government, received the Award for Closing the Gender Gap in South and Southeast Asia at the Women in Parliaments Global Forum in Brussels, Belgium.

The award was given to the Philippines for ranking first among nations in South and Southeast Asia in the World Economic Forum’s survey of nations’ ability to close the gender gap.

Legarda highlighted the country’s success in closing the gender gap through relevant policies and programs of the government, including laws she authored and co-authored for the protection of women: the Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act, the Magna Carta of Women, the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, and the Domestic Workers Act, among many others.

“We are already number one in Southeast Asia and in the 2013 Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum (WEF), we are ranked fifth in the world in a survey of nations’ ability to close gender gap. The challenge today is to maintain these gains,” Legarda said.

“Women have been in leadership positions and continue to lead in the Philippines, but challenges will never go away. We must provide women the needed support to have the confidence to lead and be at the forefront of efforts to improve Filipino communities and take initiatives that will contribute to the nation’s progress,” she concluded.

Senate hopes BIR proposal for lower tax rates will come with PNoy certification

MANILA-One of the three senators who have filed bills seeking to reduce personal income tax rates today welcomed the statement of Bureau of Internal Revenue chief Kim Henares that the agency will draft its own proposal. 

“Coming from Commissioner Henares, that’s a great leap forward,” Senator Ralph Recto said. 

Recto said the Senate is looking forward to receiving what Henares described in a TV interview as BIR’s “holistic study” on the matter.

"When it is ready, I hope it would come to us with a presidential certification that is an urgent measure," Recto said. 

While the BIR is preparing its position, Recto said the upper chamber will continue “calling hearings and running some numbers on how to adjust income tax rates which were pegged 17 years ago.”

He said last week’s hearing by Senate Ways and Means chair Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara on various tax break bills was the start of  a process of recalibrating income tax brackets and rates.  

Discussed during the said hearing was Recto’s Senate Bill (SB) 716, Angara’s SB 2149, and Sen. Bam Aquino’s SB 1942.

In his bill’s explanatory note, Recto said when the present individual tax brackets and rates were imposed in 1997, the cost of goods was half than what it is now.

“The Consumer Price Index from 1998 to May 2013 almost doubled. The basket of goods costing P100 in 1998 was worth P196 in May last year,” he said.

He said Section 24 of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997 should be amended to reflect the erosion in the value of money.

Current tax rates, based on annual net taxable income, meaning after deductions are as follows :

Below P10,000                               5 %

P10,000 to not over P30,000         P500 + 10% in excess of P20,000

P30,000 to not over P70,000         P2,500 + 15%  in excess  of P30,000 

P70,000 to not over P140,000       P8,500 +20%  in excess of  P70,000

P140,000 to not over P250,000     P22,500 +25% in excess of P140,000

P 250,000 to not over P500,000    P50,000 +30% in excess of P250,000

P500,000 and up                            P125,000 + 32% in excess of P500,000

Recto is batting for a new schedule that would impose no tax on net income of below P20,000. 

For a net taxable income of below P60,000, a tax of 10 %; 15% for  P60,000 to not over P140,000; 20% for P140,000 to not over P280,000; P25 % for P280,000 to not over P500,000; 30 % for P500,000 to not over P1,000,000.      

He said his proposed tax rates can still be lowered if studies will show that government can absorb the foregone revenues.

“In reality, we can lower the rates further, but in lawmaking, we  have to veto-proof our proposals. The political reality is that eventually the final call is with the executive branch so we’re putting forward a set of proposal that they’ll find hard to veto,” he said. 

ANGARA BATS FOR LOWER INCOME TAX RATES

MANILA-To ease Filipinos' financial burden, Senator Juan Edgardo "Sonny" Angara has filed a bill that seeks to reduce the rates of individual income tax and adjust the individual income tax brackets.

"The general policy is that taxation must be uniform but it also must be progressive. Dapat nakabase siya sa kakayahan ng taxpayer na magbayad. Karamihan nga sa ating mga kababayan ay lugmok sa kahirapan. 30 to 40 percent are living below the poverty line. We must do everything we can to help them and I think this is one way we can look at," said Angara, chair of the Senate committee on ways and means.

Angara's Senate Bill No. 2149 aims to reduce the country's individual income tax rate from the current 32 percent to 25 percent by 2017.

"Tax system should not only be a means to raise revenues for the State but it should also be a way or a method by which the State can promote its ends. I know the Aquino administration is big on inclusive growth especially in a country where there are vast income differences. We're on the same team here. I think with smaller tax rates, we can have greater voluntary compliance," he said.

The lawmaker also emphasized that his proposed measure is in preparation for the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Integration, and is consistent with the Philippine commitment to the 10-member ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint, which seeks to transform ASEAN into a single market and production base by December 2015.

"While the ASEAN Blueprint does not mandate member countries to amend their income tax schedules, it is highly expected that human capital would flow to where it could earn best. When the AEC Declaration was signed in 2007, some member-states began to lower their corporate and individual income tax rates, with further reductions in the subsequent years," Angara said.

The neophyte senator cited that the Philippines has the highest individual income tax rate next to Thailand's 37 percent and Vietnam's 35 percent.

Meanwhile, the highest tax bracket of Cambodia is 20 percent, Indonesia 30 percent, Laos 24 percent, Malaysia 26 percent, Myanmar 20 percent and Singapore 20 percent.

He further noted that the country's current individual income tax bracket has remained unchanged since 1997 until today even when the consumer price index has almost doubled already.

"In order for the Philippines to attract human capital and to prevent the migration of our own, it is imperative that we reduce the existing income tax rates while maintaining the progressivity of our income tax system, as mandated by the 1987 Philippine Constitution," he said.

The Angara bill provides that in order to buffer the revenue impact of the individual income bracket adjustments and the reduction of individual income tax rates, the tax rate reduction will be spread over a period of three years starting 2015.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), however, maintains that it would oppose any measure that will result to revenue loss.

"Since we are tasked and our performance is based on collection, it would be positive for us if whatever measure would be revenue neutral and if there will be resulting revenue loss, there should be identification of revenue raising measure to compensate the revenue loss that will result from this proposal," said BIR Assistant Commissioner Marissa Cabreros during Tuesday's ways and means public hearing.

Department of Finance Undersecretary Jeremias Paul also revealed that the government stands to lose at least P43 billion by 2017 if SB 2149 will be passed.

There have been reports that the counterpart committee in the House of Representatives is looking into raising the value added tax (VAT) to compensate the revenue loss of lowering income tax.

The senator, however, worries that an increase in VAT might also trickle down to the purchasing power of consumers. "Not to mention it's very unpopular," he quipped.

Nevertheless, the chair of the powerful Senate ways and means committee said he would refer similar bills reducing income tax to a technical working group to further study the matter.

Legarda Echoes UN Call for Safe Schools

MANILA-Senator Loren Legarda today echoed the call of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) for the Philippines to be a leader country in building safe schools.

Legarda, the UN Champion for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation, made the statement as the UNISDR and the Department of Education, in partnership with the Office of Senator Loren Legarda, launched the UN Global Programme on Safe Schools in the Philippines.

“By safe, we mean that school buildings should be structurally sound and built on safe ground. We do not want a strong temblor killing hundreds of children studying inside their classrooms or a whole mountain of mud instantly burying children alive, like what happened in Barangay Guinsaugon,” she said.

The safe schools program invites citizens to participate in the process of making schools disaster-resilient with the initial step of assessing the safety of schools in their communities.

The Senator recalled that in 2006, 246 schoolchildren were among the more than 1,000 casualties in a landslide that followed several days of heavy rains in Barangay Guinsaugon, St. Bernard, Southern Leyte.

Meanwhile, in 2013, when typhoon Yolanda made landfall, even some evacuation centers were reached by the storm surge, instantly killing hundreds of individuals who thought they had already sought refuge. Yolanda damaged more than 3,000 schools, aside from other infrastructure, in the affected regions.

“It is estimated that annually, disasters affect 66.5 million children worldwide; and because children are among the most vulnerable to disasters, it is important that not only do we keep our children out of harm’s way, but also we make them part of building resilient communities,” said Legarda.

She explained that learning institutions and the youth should be directly involved in efforts to make communities safe from disasters. Children should witness and practice disaster risk reduction early on in life.

“If we inculcate in our children a level of disaster preparedness, this will be passed on to the succeeding generations when they become adults. This is what we aim with the safe schools initiative. We need safe schools; we need schoolchildren who are knowledgeable and informed about DRR. In making our nation disaster-resilient, we not only protect our young people, but also invest in our country’s future,” Legarda concluded.

P20-M PNP hostel to rise in NE

CABANATUAN CITY, Nueva Ecija – A three-story, P20-million hostel for the Philippine National Police will rise inside the provincial police camp here soon to serve as home to police officers in the province.

          The exquisitely designed hostel and multi-purpose building was unveiled during ground-breaking ceremonies inside the provincial public safety company compound fronting the Nueva Ecija Provincial Police Office here Monday.

          Nueva Ecija Gov. Aurelio Umali said the facility, which will serve as the police officers’ “home away from home,” will be finished in six months. It was funded by the provincial government out of its realigned intelligence funds.

          Umali led the ground-breaking rites for the building along with PNP Chief Director General Alan Madrid Purisima, National Police Commission vice chairman Eduardo Escueta and Commissioners Alejandro Urro and Luisito Palmera and provincial police director, Senior Superintendent Crizaldo Nieves.

          Umali said the facility will house a conference hall in the ground floor, 10 mini-suites in the second floor and four suites in the third floor. He said the provincial police can hold their command conference as well as small gatherings and functions in the area which will be a wi-fi zone.

          He added that this is the first known provincial camp in the country where the local PNP will have lodging houses.

          Purisima said such facility will be a big help, particularly to transient officers and men and also to their families who come for a visit.

Nieves said that the facility is something the local police can be proud of. He said that such facility gives the local police a more dignified look and commands respect from the public.

          He said that the Umali administration has been very supportive of the PNP, citing the turn-over in recent months by the provincial government to the NEPPO of patrol vehicles and the construction of other amenities such as the PPSC headquarters and gymnasium plus training on the upgrading of police capabilities.   

          Umali, who is chairman of the Regional Peace and Order Council, said that his administration has been extending full support to the local PNP because it was instrumental in changing the image of the province from a political war zone into a zone of peace, referring to the spate of politically motivated killings .

          “Before, Nueva Ecija’s history was written in violence. I have to rewrite it and I can only do that if I have the support of the police,” he said in his speech.

          He said the province was so blessed to have Purisima – a Novo Ecijano - as the chief of the 148,000-strong police force.

          The governor said his administration has been extending assistance to the local PNP as a show of respect to the law enforcers, something which, he said, should be followed by other local government units in the province.

          “If you can give your life in the service, then the LGUs should pay respect to you by providing you with a decent and dignified place to live in,” he said.

          Umali said that year in and year out, the various police offices have been undergoing repair yet support is wanting. “It’s about time that if we really respect the PNP, let’s help them and not just talk,” he said, referring to the LGUs.

He said he is taking his hats off the PNP not only for transforming the image of the province but also for but also for its crime-busting efforts which resulted in reduced criminality. “You should wear your uniforms proudly,” he added. (Manny Galvez)