DOF to collect P114 B unpaid GOCC dividends

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Finance (DOF) plans to collect about P114 billion in unpaid dividends from government-owned and -controlled corporations.

In an interview, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said the DOF is continuing discussions with GOCCs which have remaining arrearages, including the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC), Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM), National Power Corp. (NPC), Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

GOCCs are required to remit at least half of their net profit to the Bureau of the Treasury pursuant to Republic Act 7656 or the GOCC Dividend Law.

“That is a long argument that has been in our history for a long time. There are arrears with the PDIC, PSALM, NPC, PCSO, CAAP, but fortunately we are making progress in these dividends,” Dominguez told reporters.

According to Dominguez, total unpaid dividends have reached P46.5 billion from the PDIC, P29.87 billion from PSALM, P20.66 billion from NPC, P6.89 billion from PCSO, and P6.31 billion from CAAP.

“Many of these have to do with legal discussions and some of them have to do with the fact that the collections, of PSALM for instance, is quite low, so they have a lot of receivables and they haven’t moved as quickly as they should have,” the finance chief said.

“PDIC is a problem because they say they have a new charter, they are not supposed to pay dividends, and we are saying that first of all we have to divide it. There was a past dividend due and a current dividend due,” he added.

Dominguez said the PCSO, for its part, argues that its proceeds should go to its charity fund, pursuant to its charter.

“But in most other countries those earnings actually support government operations. Not only countries, even states like in the US they have their own lottery funds, so there are dividends,” he said.

Despite these arguments, the finance chief said he remains confident the national government would be able to collect the unpaid dividends.

“Yes I am confident, but I cannot say exactly when because we have this long argument,” he said.

Dividends from state corporations form part of the national government’s non-tax revenues.

Aside from this, the BTr also collects the government’s share from the airport terminal fee, the income of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., and the profit of the Manila International Airport Authority.