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Dear Editor,
I watched the President’s press conference on August 14, and while I expected the President to address or correct the widespread concerns about the PGST and BPT, I was shocked and disappointed that he completely ignored the critical issue of how the PGST is actually applied. It is easy to explain how the tax is supposed to work, but he did not clarify how it is actually implemented. I expected him to provide evidence that the tax is not increased each time it is passed through the entire PGST chain and ultimately paid by the consumer. However, all these years later, even at this press conference, the President, his Minister and Director did not address this issue.
Now, I really doubt their claim that critics are “misleading” the public. If they really want to set the record straight, the president has failed in his efforts to do so. In fact, his lack of transparency about the actual process feels disingenuous and even dishonest.
Additionally, we were told that under the Business Profit Tax (BPT) portion of the PGST system, large companies have 94 tax exemptions and that the 12% tax on their revenues is much lower than what they would have paid under the old 4% system. I was hoping for clear answers from the Finance Minister, the Tax Commissioner, and especially the President. Instead, they continue to dodge the issue. Frustrated, I visited the government website to look for regulations on these issues. I found the Business Profit Tax regulations, but they did not explain how all these deductions apply to large companies like WCTC and Surangel & Sons.
I hope the president and his department will give clear answers, rather than ducking questions and deflecting. If they don’t, I hope responsible reporting will bring the truth to light.
My message,
concave
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