Let’s not put another tax on our workers

I was quite sad to come across the news recently that the government plans to tax 13th month pay and other holiday incentives and bonuses. If this comes to pass that means that workers will no longer enjoy tax exemption on their annual bonus packages that they look forward to every year. Not to mention with the inclusion of 13th month salary and bonuses, income will go up and bring income tax up as well. Those who earn less than P20,000 a month will have to add the year-end bonuses and will push their annual income above the P250,000 proposed tax free bracket.

Personally, I know that taxes are a sensitive subject for most Filipinos. After all, we have one of the highest taxes in the region despite not having the highest salaries. Not to mention, we have been taxed so heavily for so long but haven’t really seen where the money has been going. The last couple of years have been particularly harsh because we feel we have been paying so much in taxes only to find out that corruption has been so bad and our hard earned taxes are just lining the pockets of corrupt officials giving them a better life and giving nothing back to the people.

Changing the tax system is a necessity but it’s going to be an uphill battle no doubt. While I understand that the government needs to “collect funds” to implement the projects they want to do it just hurts so much to see that little joys like year-end bonuses are going to be subject to taxation. I suppose if there was more transparency as to where the money is going to go it would feel a bit better. But as it stands it’s just a vague proclamation that funds will be used for projects to benefit the population. What projects are these?

I think that before adding more and more taxes, the government should work on fixing the current system top to bottom. BIR has long been plagued with issues including corruption and inefficiency. Before they start revamping the tax system, they should probably first look at the agency and make sure it is optimally ready for the new taxes and nothing is going to waste.

At the end of the day, I know we will have to be willing to give a little to see progress in the Philippines. I just hope that the money is truly funneled in the right direction and that this time, unlike many times before we will all actually see and enjoy the fruits of our labors. The Philippines has really been due for improvements and changes. I can only hope that it really starts to happen. 

I actually think the President is on the right track when he said he wants to increase the salaries and upgrade the benefits of the PNP and Armed Forces. After all, these are the men and women who risk their lives on a daily basis to protect the country and implement law and order in the land. They deserve more job security. Not to mention it might help address the corruption in law enforcement. If our policemen are better paid and better taken care of, they would be less tempted to engage in other activities in order to earn extra income.

Alongside the increased salaries for those in uniform though, I also think the government should look into increasing the salaries for our teachers too. After all, education is the bedrock of our society. If our population is educated better, everything around us will improve. People will make wiser choices and overall, more and more opportunities will be available and more and more people will be able to make a difference in the Philippines.

As it stands, our teachers don’t really earn enough to sustain them. Several of them have to walk or hike for miles and miles just to be able to get to school and teach the children in the province. Many of them also have to purchase their own materials like markers, crayons, and etc to be able to provide for their students. I really feel that teachers are one of the unsung heroes in the country and we should take better care of them.

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The Inter-Agency Council on Traffic (IACT) has suspended roadwork for the holidays to help ease the congestion on the roads. Once the holidays kick in the traffic, which was already bad to begin with, will only continue to get worse and worse. As it stands, it takes roughly two hours to get anywhere and another two hours to get home (and that’s conservative). That means we spend roughly 4-5 hours just on road. Imagine all that time, energy, and productivity wasted just sitting in a car. At least those with drivers might be able to get some work done, but as for the rest who have to drive, they just sit there wasting precious hours.

The traffic conditions in the country have really gotten so bad. I read that traffic costs the Philippines roughly P2.4 billion lost income on a daily basis not to mention raising tempers and blood pressures. It really has to be solved with a long-term solutions. No more schemes and ideas. Infrastructure and development is one of the best ways to make a difference.

I have seen some of the MMDA’s plans and ideas on how to improve traffic flow, like removing the coding window, possibly changing the coding mechanics, and more. I feel like, while these measures are good, they are like putting a band-aid on a bullet wound. It might improve for a while but in the end if nothing changes all the little improvements won’t mean a thing. After all, if you look at it closely, what the coding scheme did was just prompt people to buy an extra car. In the end, the same number of vehicles were out on the roads on a daily basis.

Improved infrastructure and better public transportation are the best way to go to ease the traffic burden. I really look forward to these measures being implemented in the future. It’s the only way to address the problem and provide a real long-term solution.