Saturday, July 12, 2008 Godofredo M. Roperos: Senior citizens, e-vat By Godofredo M. Roperos Politics Also
THERE is no sense in government extending 20 percent privilege discount to senior citizens if they do not get to enjoy it. The discount is from the price of medicines and cost of entertainment, transportation, as well as meals from restaurants and eateries.
These are supposed to be extended by establishments in compliance with the senior citizens law and as a measure of recognition and respect for older citizens. However, the benefits are not enjoyed by the beneficiaries.
Right now, senior citizens who eat in restaurants with members of the family or with some companions find themselves paying the expanded valued-added tax (e-vat) based on the total amount paid for the food.
The total is then divided by the number of persons who share the meal. If the group numbers six persons, then 20 percent of one-sixth the total is the discount.
The total amount of benefits actually enjoyed by the senior citizen-beneficiary often comes out less than the amount of the e-vat imposed. Thus, the mandated 20 percent discount does not really make any difference in the lives of senior citizens.
This brings us to the matter of the e-vat itself that the national government is collecting almost on all facets of our existence.
Daily, we run smack on something that makes us cough up a few pesos for e-vat, whether you are buying gasoline or eating in a restaurant or buying hardware materials. And like other taxes we pay the government, we do not know where most of the taxes go.
Whether dealing with government directly or indirectly, we pay a certain amount of fees in return for services we receive from the government. How the taxes collected and accumulated are used or spent, is beyond us, taxpayers.
We go by faith—faith that the government will spend the taxes wisely and honestly. Complaints of graft and corruption against some public officials in the process of spending the taxes may be true or not---again, a matter of faith.
Reports said that oil companies that have been steadily increasing the price of oil products per liter, to the point of driving us all crazy with the oil cost fall out, paid the government last year e-vat taxes to the tune of more than P16 billion. That’s a lot of money.
Still, the oil companies may be paying the government the said amount, but it is the consuming public that’s footing the bill.
These firms are shrewdly passing on to the consuming public the e-vat. It’s like baking the cake and forced us to eat it, too.
