Tax-free real estate property for homeowners

A voice in the wilderness is what I would call it. But just like the new president and vice president who started at the bottom of the election ladder and slowly but surely worked their way up, the newly elected representative from Camarines Sur (just like Leni Robredo) is not giving up on his advocacy for the government to exempt the Filipino family from real estate and property tax.

This is a move I fully support and believe will be to the extreme benefit of the people. House Bill No. 1649 did not pass the recently concluded 16th Congress because of time limitations, but I am sure it will be proposed again in the 17th Congress under the leadership of Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez of Davao and hopefully it will be passed and approved by President Rodrigo Duterte.

Although the President has been quite vocal about his desire to fight crime, drugs and corruption as his first priority, he has also stated that he wants to enact laws that will help all Filipinos and uplift their lives. He has said that he will continue to keep his ear to the ground to look for opportunities to be able to help Filipinos in need, and I think this is one of those chances to be able to do so. Fortunately for all of us, we have an administration that wants to look out for the multitude and make lives better for as many Filipinos as possible. Though we may not have all voted for him in the recent election, the time has come to stand behind him as we all strive to create better laws and a better Philippines for everyone.

I think that this bill is a very important piece of legislation that will help so many if passed. After all, in our current state, we are all forced to pay a large amount for real estate tax on our family homes. This is on top of all the other hefty payments we make in terms of utilities, income tax, etc. It has become increasingly difficult for so many Filipino families to stretch their income to cover everything they need to pay. As it stands we already have the highest income tax in all of Southeast Asia despite not having the highest salaries, it is important for us to find ways to help alleviate the burden on the country’s workers in whatever way we can.

Should Bill 1649 pass it would exempt the family home from the coverage of real property tax by amending the Family Code of the Philippines. This gives families a little more assurance that they will not be tossed out of the homes they worked so hard to build or buy for their loved ones. At the end of the day if people have a level of security or feel like they are taken care of, that is one less worry on their mind and they are allowed to be more productive and can contribute more to society as a whole.

The country has always said that the family is the bedrock of the nation so it only makes sense that we do as much as possible to protect the family and their most basic needs – the dwelling which they call home. There are so many other ways to earn money for government projects. I truly feel that this is something that they can give to the people. There is nothing more terrifying than the fear of losing your home. It’s time Filipinos are able to stop worrying about this and focus instead on more positive things.

Again, I feel President Duterte has so many opportunities to make real change that will affect the lives of every Filipino. If he keeps taking these little steps they will turn into big ones that will make such a positive impact on so many. He has six years to do this, so let’s support him and do our part.

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It seems to me as if the new secretary of environment and natural resources and the mining industry are headed toward an eventual collision course. This saddens me because I don’t think this is necessary and the eventual clash will result in more harm than good. After all, while it is important to take care of the environment we also have to be aware that the mining industry plays a big and important role in our country.

The Philippines is, after all, largely dependent on its natural resources, and forestry and mining play a big role in our country’s growth and development. When I was working in the private sector many years ago, we crafted the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 and, together with the Senate, came up with a responsible mining platform for the nation that was the envy of countries around the world like Australia and Canada to name a few. There were no other countries in the world that had such a strict and well planned out control of and partnership with the mining industry.

Personally, I understand the need to be wary and look out for our natural resources. After all, years of abuse from outside entities have certainly taken its toll. However, we can’t allow this fear to rule us and there has to be a good compromise that will benefit all. After all, there are so many benefits to mining in the world that a lot of people don’t see and it’s never really one-sided and as black and white as some might like to think.

I hope that the DENR Secretary, who is known to be quite vocal about being anti-mining, will not let her personal crusade turn into a conflict of interest when it comes to what is best for the country. This is an issue that should be resolved sooner than later. After all, the end goal should be to create a better country. The mining industry is poised to make a large contribution when it comes to investment and development in the Philippines and the government should work with them to ensure that it is the best possible program for the Philippines.