Marcos ill gotten wealth of $5 - $10 Billion Dollars; ₱1 Billion Peso recovered in USA

A case study by the World Bank-UN Office on Drugs and Crime's Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative estimated that Marcos had purloined between $5 billion and $10 billion during his reign from 1965 to 1986. Photo: Philippine Daily Inquirer 

US officials seize Marcos properties worth ₱1B

US authorities have seized a fresh cache of dollars, prime New York properties and paintings worth as much as ₱1 billion believed to be part of the hidden wealth plundered by Ferdinand Marcos during his two-decade rule, the Philippine Daily Inquirer learned Tuesday  

The revelation was made on the day the Reuters news agency, in a dispatch from New York City, said that Vilma Bautista, a New York resident and one-time secretary to former First Lady Imelda Marcos, would be charged by the Manhattan District Attorney in connection with four paintings in her possession, including some by Impressionist artists, that disappeared after the fall of the Marcos dictatorship in 1986.

A top government official, who requested anonymity because US federal officials had not authorized the release of this information, told the Inquirer in Manila that the discovery of these assets could lead to more wealth that Marcos, his family and associates had allegedly illegally stashed overseas after the dictator was ousted in the Edsa People Power Revolution in 1986.

"We were informed by US authorities that they have seized several bank accounts after investigating these deposits for unusual large transactions in the past few months. The investigation has led them to seize an apartment in a prime New York location, where more assets and certificates were discovered," the official said.

The source said that among the assets seized were three paintings of "Old Masters," including a piece by French Impressionist Claude Monet.

"We estimate the seized assets to be worth between $20 million and $30 million, or roughly P1 billion," the source said.

The source said that this haul of Marcos assets was not among the fabulous fortune that the government had identified.

Officials of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), formed after the 1986 revolution to go after the Marcoses' ill-gotten wealth, did not return the Inquirer's calls.

In a report attributed to a person familiar with the investigation conducted by US authorities, Reuters said that some of the paintings in Bautista's possession hung in a Manhattan town house used by Imelda Marcos when her husband was in power.

The US probe comes a quarter century after the Philippine dictator was forced out by an uprising and fled the country in 1986. He died in 1989.

Bautista, who is in her 70s, could not immediately be reached for comment. Joan Vollero, a spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., declined comment, according to Reuters.

Imelda Marcos, 83, known for her extravagant lifestyle and her collection of over a thousand shoes, is not expected to face charges in the case, the news agency said.

Acquitted in earlier US case

In October 1988, the Marcoses were indicted in the Federal District Court in Manhattan in a racketeering case that included accusations they embezzled more than $100 million from the Philippine government and used the money to buy three buildings in New York City.

Imelda, described as a "steel butterfly" in her glory days, herself testified before the federal grand jury and was later acquitted.

In a magazine interview published in February 2007, the former first lady, who is now an Ilocos Norte representative in Congress, was asked about her New York trial and her paintings.

"You're living now in the Pacific Plaza, in Manila. They sold off most of your old masters at Christie's years ago, but I understand there are a few Picassos and Gauguins still hanging with you in that swanky condo," the interviewer said.

Imelda replied:

"The paintings and the jewelry they confiscated, all without any good reason. You know, I won the case of the century in New York, and so the little I have left, I will tell you, was because of some servants of mine, who were able to keep a few pieces in the slum area where they were living." (

₱90Billion Pesos worth of assets

The PCGG has reported it had recovered over ₱90 billion worth of assets from the Marcoses and their cronies, including Swiss bank accounts turned over to the Philippine government. A large part of the assets were used to fund the government's agrarian reform program.

A case study by the World Bank-UN Office on Drugs and Crime's Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative estimated that Marcos had purloined between $5 billion and $10 billion during his reign from 1965 to 1986.

The study said:

"This ill-gotten wealth was accumulated through six channels: Outright takeover of large private enterprises; creation of state-owned monopolies in vital sectors of the economy; awarding government loans to private individuals acting as fronts for Marcos or his cronies; direct raiding of the public treasury and government financial institutions; kickbacks and commissions from firms working in the Philippines, and skimming off foreign aid and other forms of international assistance. The proceeds were laundered through the use of shell corporations, which invested the funds in real estate inside the United States, or by depositing the funds in various domestic and offshore banks under pseudonyms, in numbered accounts or accounts with code names." (http://is.gd/RPUqET)

Inquirer 

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Sin Tax Bill Philippines A Big Victory for ₱40 Billion

Sin tax Bill Philippines - Passed. Photo: Rappler.com

Voting 15-2, Senate OKs Sin Tax Bill

The Senate, voting 15-2, finally approved the controversial measure increasing excise taxes for cigarettes and alcohol products after senators intensely debated on the appropriate equal distribution of tax burden among the two so-called sin products.

Only two senators, Senators Joker Arroyo and Francis Escudero voted against the bill.

Those who cast a "yes" vote were

1. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile
2. Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada
3. Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III
4. Sen. Franklin Drilon
5. Gregorio Honasan II
6. Pia Cayetano
7. Lito Lapid
8. Aquilino Pimentel III
9. Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
10. Teofisto Guingona, III
11. Loren Legarda,
12. Ramon Revilla Jr.
13. Manuel Villar
14. Ralph Recto
15. Panfilo Lacson.

Drilon, sponsor of the bill, and chair of the Ways and Means Committee, said the government stands to generate ₱40 billion in additional revenues with the passage of the measure.

THE UNIVERSITY of the Philippines Economics Towards Consciousness together with other UP school organizations hold a Sin Tax Consciousness Parade at the Diliman campus to inform fellow students about the advantages of passing the law.

Of the amount, ₱24 billion will come from increased taxes on tobacco, while ₱16 billion will be generated from taxes on fermented liquor and distilled spirits depending on its historical burden sharing.

Prior to the approval on third and final reading, Enrile demanded a re-computation of the multi-year tax burdens after seeing what he saw was a "distortion in the computation."

As approved in caucus, the aggregate sin tax collection target was pegged at ₱40-billion with a 60-40 percent burden sharing scheme which tobacco tax take was set at ₱24-billion and alcohol tax at ₱16-billion under the Senate version.

"After much negotiation, we have agreed on a three-tier system for taxes of cigarettes," Drilon said. "We have maintained a 60-40 burden sharing between cigarettes and alcohol. What are the totals that we expect to collect on a per year basis?"

Drilon enumerated them:

The total increment would be

• ₱39.5 billion; in 2013
• ₱45.7 billion; in 2014
• ₱52.3 billion; in 2015
• ₱57.7 billion; in 2016
• ₱64.4 billion in 2017

The rates will be as follows. For the lowest priced, the excise tax for efective next year per pack would be  

• 2013 will be ₱12.00
• 2014, ₱15.00
• 2015, ₱18.00
• 2016, ₱21.00
• 2017, ₱26.00.

On the medium priced cigarettes, the excise tax for 2013 will be ₱16.00; in 2014, ₱18.00; in 2015, ₱22.00; in 2016, ₱24.00; and in 2017, ₱26.00.  . For the highest priced, the excise tax for 2013 will be ₱20.00; in 2014, ₱21.00; in 2015, ₱22.00; in 2016, ₱24.00; and in 2017, ₱26.00.

Senate Bill No. 3299 otherwise known as "an Act Restructuring the Excise Tax on Alcohol and Tobacco Products" was adopted with 15 affirmative votes, two negative votes, and zero abstention.

 "The passage of this bill is monumental in the history of this chamber. Once again, amidst the differences in our views, we have proven that we care more about saving lives than generating revenues; and that we remain true to serving the nation above personal interest," said Drilon who went through tedious debates on the proposed measure.

President Aquino has certified the bill as urgent. (http://is.gd/wConSB)

Manila Bulletin 

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FRANCE said Philippines must tax Text Messaging : Malacañang said NO WAY

No Tax On Text messaging in the Philippines. Photo: ticklethewire.com

No Tax On Text

MANILA, Philippines --- Mobile phone users should not fret about a purported looming tax on text messages for now after Malacañang appeared reluctant to consider such tax proposal made by the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said yesterday the government is "preoccupied" with seeking the swift approval of the sin tax bill in Congress for the year.

Certified as urgent by President Benigno S. Aquino III, the sin tax measure seeks to generate at least P40 billion a year to help upgrade healthcare services in the country.

"We are presently preoccupied with the sin tax," Lacierda said in a Palace press briefing when asked if the Palace is open to impose tax on text messages.

"We have not discussed in the highest level on the text tax. That was not something that we have anticipated so we have no discussions on that," he said.

Asked if the sin tax bill will be the first and last tax proposal for the year, Lacierda said: "For this year, the sin tax measure is in the budget in terms of fiscal policies are concerned. That's the thing we are looking at right now."

Secretary Ramon Carandang of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) also frowned on the tax on text proposal by IMF to generate more revenues.

"Sin taxes should be "enough for now," Carandang said.

IMF chief Christine Lagarde earlier said the government can shore up revenues if mobile phone messages are taxed.

Lagarde, who visited Manila last week, said Vice President Jejomar Binay told her telephone coverage in the Philippines has reached 112 percent given the popularity of sending text messages. "This clearly satisfies one of the two criteria for what we call a good taxation," she said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Francis Escudero balked yesterday at the proposal to increase the tax on text messaging to boost government revenues which came at the heels of the IMF chief's visit to the Philippines.

Escudero, who chairs the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, said he finds it inappropriate for an institution or any foreign entities to dictate on any other government like the Philippine government "what to and not to tax."

"The IMF and its chief has no business in even suggesting that we impose tax on text. The power to tax is inherent in Congress and any external intervention is already meddling with our sovereignty," Escudero said.

Lagarde, in a meeting with Malacanang officials, had also pushed for the passage of the sin tax bill which is now pending approval at the Senate, saying it would be a "great progress for the revenue collection of the country."

At the same venue, Lagarde suggested that telecommunication services are mines for new source of taxation because of its wide base of 102 million subscriptions.

She said if the government is keen on revving up its revenues, then telecommunication would satisfy those two criterias: text messaging and calls.

But Escudero said Lagarde's suggestion is skewed, if not so unfeeling, "granting that it has a place in our economic affairs."

"I strongly oppose this foreign meddling and even the idea behind it. Ms. Lagarde is better off making suggestions to her fellow Europeans who can perhaps learn a thing or two from us," he said.

Taxation, Escudero said, should be based on the ability of taxpayers to pay.

"Text messaging is so ingrained among the lower socio-economic strata with about 90 percent of mobile phone users have pre-paid lines. Instead of providing relief for the Filipino public, this twisted idea of taxing text is an additional burden to the masses," he pointed out.

Escudero said he would block any bill proposing for higher tax on text and calls when it reaches the Senate.

On the other hand, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr. said he is open to the proposition made by the IMF chief.

"If at all, why not set our sights on taxing luxury goods such as motor vehicles and jewelry instead of taxing text messages?" Escudero said. (With a report from Hannah L. Torregoza) (http://is.gd/krr1NN)

Manila Bulletin 

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