CLARK FREEPORT -- Incentives of locators inside Freeports and economic zones or ecozone should be retained, according to an official of the Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PamCham).
Rene Romero, president of PamCham, said this should be the case with the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) Package 2+ under the country’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program.
“Of course, itang ibaba de itang corporate tax, very welcome ya ita e. Pero itang mabawas o milako la incentives reng kayabe tamung negosyanti kareng freeports and ecozones, ita kokontran mi ya ita. Makisabi ta mung mayap,” Romero said.
(“Of course, we welcome the lowering of corporate tax. But reducing or removing the incentives of locators in freeports and ecozones, we are against that. We urge them to reconsider”)
On June 25, 2019, Senator Sonny Angara will be the guest of honor during the business chamber’s general membership meeting at the Laus Event Center and the issue will be raised during the event, the business leader said.
“We will ask him to help us, if possible they should not remove the incentives our fellow investors although sometimes we compete with them in terms of manpower sourcing because there are many job opportunities now in Clark and Subic,” Romero added.
The economy is going strong because of the big contributions of investors inside economic zones and freeports like Clark, he said.
Romero said PamCham supports the efforts of the Clark Investors and Locators Association (CILA) to help the group’s members.
“That is why we support them, Frankie Villanueva as our main point person here in Clark. They are talking with the Department of Finance and the others so that we will have supporters at the Congress and Senate should the Trabaho Bill will be pushed again,” the businessman said.