By Mortz C. Ortigoza
Amid the economic crunch, the head of the tax agency in
Central Pangasinan launched Operation Kandado to boost her tax collection for
this year.
Revenue District Office – 4 Chief Merlyn DV Vicente said
three business establishments in Dagupan City and Manaoag town were raided by
the Bureau of Internal Revenue and closed through its Operation Kandado
(Padlock).
EXECUTIVES – Top honchos of the
Bureau of Internal Revenue in the four provinces’ Region-1 pose for posterity
after a function. (L-R) Ilocos Sur Revenue District Chief-3 Trina Villamil,
Regional Director Baby Nacar, Assistant RD0-4 Chief Badette Mangaoang, Central
Pangasinan RD0-4 Chief Merlyn Vicente.
O.K is a measure by the tax agency to taxpayers who are
remissed in reporting and paying their correct value-added tax (VAT)
liabilities, their failures to issue official receipts, file their VAT returns
or registered them to the BIR, understates their taxable sales or receipts by
30% or more of the correct amount on the case of a VAT-registered taxpayer, and
others.
Vicente said those commercial establishment that had been
closed by Operation Kandado can open their business after they pay their tax
dues and comply with the requirements of the tax agency.
She said her office, that oversees the two cities and 13
towns, had been ordered to collect P4, 772, 404,000 - an 18.90% jumped from its
collection last year of P4, 015, 661,029.41.
RDO-4 is the prime BIR’s office in the Ilocos Region as
it has a burgeouning business environment compared to its five contemparies in
Region-1.
She said that the regional office of the Bureau of
Internal Revenue in Region 1 was tasked by the national government to collect
P17, 646,987,000.00 this year.
This year’s tax target is an increase of 23.11 % to the
last year’s collection of P14, 699,567,638.47, according to Revenue District
Office-4 Chief Merlyn DV Vicente.
She cited that the regional office, under Director
Clavelina S. Nacar that covered the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La
Union, and Pangasinan, had a goal of P14, 334,316,000.00 last year.
A data secured by this newspaper showed the spikes of the
percentages of the collection for this year versus last year. 17.35% for
RDO-1 in Laoag City ; 22.31% for RDO 2 in Vigan City; 24.20% for
RDO 3 in San Fernando City; 18.90% for RDO-4 here; 22.80% for RDO-5 in Alaminos
City ; and 39.28% for RDO-6 in Urdaneta City.
BIR insiders, who asked for anonymity, told Northern
Watch that many RDO chiefs considered the hundreds of millions of
pesos collection target this year a tall order from the tax agency’s national
office in Quezon City.
Meanwhile, after leading the monthly collection streaks’
last year, the tax office in Eastern Pangasinan faces a tall order to collect
P2, 298, 570,000.00 or almost 40 % more of its last year’s collection.
According to data secured by this newspaper at the
Regional Office, Revenue District Office -6 based here collected P1, 900,
827,797.19 last year.
Under the present stewardship of RDO-6 Chief Maria
Isabel B. Utit, the office had an average of 17% collection performances in
years 2016 and 2017.
“We reversed this office’s anemic six percent average
collection performances in 2011 to 2015,” She said.
Utit, a Certified Public Accountant and a lawyer, cited
her being strict to pursue what those delinquent taxpayers owed the government
that resulted, as one, of the collection turned around of RDO-6.
RDO-6 covers the thriving city of Urdaneta and 15 towns.
Among the six RDOs in the four provinces’ Region 1, data
shows that the tax agency’s Eastern Pangasinan office carries the yeoman’s job
from the national government to spike by 39.28% of its collection last year to
its target this year.
An RDO, as practice all over the country, used to have an
average of 20% tax hike from its previous year collection.
Below is the comparison of the collection last year and
the tax targets this year of the six RDOs:
