How do you kill a hydra?

The war on drugs rages on and if anything has become evident as the first Senate hearing on extrajudicial killings commenced, it is that it’s going to be far more complicated than we thought. The hearings led by the committee on justice and human rights, chaired by Sen. Leila de Lima, and the committee on public order and illegal drugs, chaired by Sen. Panfilo Lacson, brought in witnesses to testify regarding the deaths of their loved ones in the war on drugs.

As of Monday night, due to time constraints, the only witnesses who shared their stories were Harra Kazuo, whose common law husband JP Bertes and his father Renato Bertes were taken from their home and fatally shot by policemen, and Mary Rose Campos, whose mother and father Rodelio and Rosalie were also killed by policemen. Based on the testimonies of these two witnesses, one thing has become quite evident – the victims were low-level drug pushers who were unfortunately silenced by corrupt lawmen who were either protecting their own interests in the drug trade or who were their suppliers of illegal drugs.

I wrote in a previous column that I was against extrajudicial killings and I stand by that, however I also understand that the menace of drugs is more far-reaching and insidious than we thought and that something must be done to curb the problem. I was particularly disturbed by what Sen. Miguel Zubiri shared about how one third of his workers in the province tested positive for illegal drug use despite having decent wages, a place to live, and food to eat. They took drugs because it was easy and, lets face it, because it was addictive. To find out that shabu/meth costs a measly P20 is shocking. It is even cheaper than buying a packet of cigarettes. Is it really a wonder that drug use is so rampant and widespread? And not only are drugs sold cheap, but also they are also extremely easy to get. To hear stories of drugs being readily available outside school campuses is very scary indeed.

I am against killing outside the confines of the law, but I have to admit that something has to be done to help the Philippines climb out of the clutches of illegal drugs, and action must indeed be decisive and strong. Drugs have become easily available and so lucrative in the country that it is quite the booming business with several global drug cartels sending their products here because of our extremely lax security. This can’t continue on the way that is has in the past.

Which brings me to the dilemma. How does one battle something so deeply entrenched in the country that it has pervaded all levels from common criminals to law enforcers, to corrupt politicians, and more? The illegal drug situation in the Philippines has become a proverbial hydra – the many-headed monster of mythology. So how does one kill the hydra? One has to be extremely tactical and not just cut the heads off. After all, cutting off a head only results in another growing in its place. In order to make a lasting difference, we have to go after the source, the higher ups in the drug trade and not just the low-level pushers. That’s the only way we’ll ever start to make a difference.

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The Senate is pushing for lower estate tax to help grieving families who have not only lost their loved ones, but must also face incredibly monstrous taxes on their estate. I am very happy that the Senate has taken into consideration the burden high estate taxes places on families and loved ones who have already lost someone, and then must also find a way to be able to afford to inherit the assets that are rightfully theirs.

Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, the committee chair for the Senate ways and means committee said that he not only wanted to lower estate tax, but also to widen the coverage of tax-deductible expenses including medical bills and funeral bills incurred by the deceased. Again, I think this is a very fair and ideal way for the government to protect families of recently deceased as bills can easily pile up once someone passes away.

I think we all know how expensive it has become to live in the Philippines. With base salaries so low and income taxes so high, we are all looking for any kind of reprieve we can get. I think tax reform is going to be an integral part of the new administration if they truly want to help the every day Filipino have a better life. It is already expensive to live in the country; it is even more expensive to die in it as well. With medical expenses being mostly out of pocket and funeral costs so high, it is quite sad to think that many Filipinos can’t even afford a proper death and burial.

That being said, for those who can pay for their medical expenses and their burial costs and have even managed to save enough or make investments that they have something to leave behind for their children, why should the country make it so difficult for their beneficiaries to get their assets? There have been stories wherein the children could not afford to pay the tax on their inheritanceand eventually lost them. I don’t think that’s right and there definitely needs to be changes made.

In the end the strong arm tactics and the high costs of estate taxes didn’t yield the results the government wanted anyway. People instead chose not to transfer land assets to their name to avoid paying the 20 percent tax. The Bureau of Internal Revenue was ambitious in collecting the estate taxes, but was largely unsuccessful. In the new proposal by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, estate tax could be cut to as low as six percent of the value of the property putting it at par with tax for capital gains.

Lower taxes are expected to not only ease the burden on the deceased’s loved ones, but also increase compliance and collection of estate tax down the road. It seems like a good win/win situation to me.