Senator presses diesel excise tax suspension

MANILA, Philippines — Even with massive rollbacks expected in the coming weeks, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian is pushing for the immediate suspension of the excise tax on diesel, arguing that pump prices remain excessively high compared to pre-crisis levels.

During a radio interview over the weekend on dzBB, Gatchalian noted that while global oil prices are showing a downward trend at around $92 per barrel, the local retail price of diesel is still a far cry from its original cost.

“We started from P60 per liter. Now it’s at P110, P115 per liter. It almost doubled,” the senator said.

He stressed that diesel is the “fuel of the masses,” powering public utility vehicles (PUVs), agricultural logistics and food transport and without tax relief, the burden directly eats up the take-home pay of drivers, especially since the government is withholding fare hikes to prevent a domino effect on inflation.

While he is pushing for the suspension of the tax on diesel, Gatchalian is open to keeping the tax on gasoline while the government monitors the situation.

The Department of Finance (DOF) previously argued against a blanket suspension of fuel taxes, claiming that it would disproportionately benefit the wealthy who consume the most fuel.

Gatchalian agreed with this premise regarding gasoline—which fuels private and luxury vehicles—but drew a sharp line when it comes to diesel. “For gasoline, it has that effect. Because majority of those high-end vehicles, let’s say BMWs, Mercedes-Benz, all of these vehicles use gasoline,” Gatchalian conceded.

“But diesel, it is used by jeepneys, buses and trucks. It is also used by generators on island communities. So diesel is more widely used,” he argued, cementing his stance that diesel requires urgent intervention.

If the government remains firmly against suspending the tax, the senator urged them to stop being slow in financial aid distribution and instead scale up the distribution of fuel discount coupons, which immediately deducts 10 percent from a driver’s gas station bill.

BSKE postponement illegal, unconstitutional

Deferring the 2026 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) to divert its funding for oil crisis relief is both unconstitutional and unnecessary, Gatchalian argued yesterday.

“First of all, that is unconstitutional. Second, because it’s the second suspension and third, many people are hoping to choose their local leader,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate committee on finance.

“The barangay election is only P8 to P9 billion. Now we have P230 billion that we can spend. So in other words, money is not lacking,” he added.

Gatchalian also reminded his colleagues the Supreme Court has previously drawn a hard line against further election delays.

“The Supreme Court has said, during the last suspension, it should be the last and we cannot suspend it again based on manufactured excuses. Because whatever the reason is, it will lead to a loss of democratic rights,” the senator warned.

This comes after several lawmakers, including Sen. Imee Marcos, backed the postponement, arguing that severe economic fallout dictates a massive shift in state priorities.