Money, more money

As the government’s fiscal year is about to end, the news that dominate these days involve money and more money from the taxpayers. National and local government budgets never go down. They just keep on increasing each year and every three years the government raises taxes to fund their budgetary increment.

The situation is an unending race – the government keeps on spending more and taxpayers are taxed some more otherwise the government will standstill. At least that is what government officials tell us. Money and more money is the language of government.

Who was that official who once said that governments never get bankrupt? If they needed money, all they have to do is raise taxes.

That is exactly what the City of Bacolod is doing. The city’s budget rose by P285 million from last year’s to the present P1.55 billion. The city has raised taxes to fund this additional P285 million, quite a hefty increase although it seems there is little for infrastructure. Maybe the SP did not have to allocate a considerable amount for infrastructure because the Bacolod Congressional District is getting a large appropriation from the national government.

The national government has passed the budget in the trillions. The Bureau of Internal Revenue will be pressed to collect every cent it can. Reports say that soon the small sari-sari store will be paying taxes. They will be required to issue official sales receipts and keep books of accounts.

The only ones that can escape from this new direction in revenue collection are those foreigners – the Indian nationals engaged in usurious lending to small businesses.

It would hearten us if the BIR, the Bureau of Immigration and the Department of Trade and Industry can put an end to this usury. They are easy to identify due to their physical appearance and readily monitored because they ride on motorcycles, in tandem with their Filipino assistant collector and they collect every day.

Although this usurious lending practice is rampant, I wonder why our authorities have turned blind to this illegal preying on our people. One is tempted to suspect that some authorities are in cahoots with them. Otherwise, how can we explain this kind of underground business?

If the BIR intends to tax small store, would it be fair that these foreigners who most probably have no business permits for this kind of operation remain tax free?

There is already discontent in the land because top government officials are sucking up billions of taxpayer’s money in crooked deals and corrupt practices. Must Filipinos also helplessly watch foreigners doing business without paying taxes in the millions while they scrimp to live?

Taxes are never popular but people are willing to pay if they see that government use this money for the common good. But what do we see? They look painfully at corrupt officials and their families strutting around in flashing vehicles and pocketing millions with impunity.

Not a day passes without one or two officials made to account for the millions entrusted to their care. The list of these officials is long but justice grinds slowly. How many government officials that are facing charges of corruption still around and even flaunting their wealth? Many continue to hold positions of power as if they are beyond the reach of the law.

It is not uncommon for people to suspect that money and more money are given to prosecutorial and judicial authorities so that the accused officials continue to enjoy their loot. Sure now and then we read or hear the news about some officials made to account and are dismissed from office for corruption but they are the exception rather than the rule. 

People are not stingy when government asks for their money. In Sweden for instance, a friend told me that the government takes away 45 percent of their salaries, automatically deducted but they have little to complain. Their kids go to school from the nursery to college for free. The school provides free lunch and snacks for kids in school. Regardless of how far their farm is from school, a government school bus picked up their children. Their health and medical needs are provided for free. Mothers get four months paid maternity leave and fathers, two months.

Sure we probably are just getting our money’s worth but people don’t see it that way. The national perception is that top government officials are corrupt and need more money to feed their corruption. This is unfortunate because thousands of civil servants are honest.*

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