Banking& Finance BusinessMirror
Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Friday, June 18, 2021
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₧242.25 billion in govt coffers via marking fuel
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By Bernadette D. Nicolas
@BNicolasBM
HE government has so far collected P242.25 billion in duties and taxes since the fuel marking program started in September 2019.
A total of 25.03 billion liters of fuel has been marked as of June 11, according to an infographic shared by the Department of Finance. During the period, the Bureau of Customs collected duties and taxes amounting to P213.87 billion while the Bureau of Internal Revenue accounted for P28.39 billion. Based on the numbers, the government was able to collect an average of P11.011 billion a month in the past 22 months of applying the fuel marking program. Also, based on the figures, the government was able to collect an average of about P9.68 in duties and taxes for every liter of fuel marked. By fuel type, diesel comprised the bulk or 60.9 percent (15.25 billion liters) of the total marked-volume of fuel. It was followed by gasoline at 38.6 percent (9.65 billion liters) and kerosene at 0.5 percent (136.02 million liters). Most of the fuel marked by the government was located in Luzon (73.36 percent or 18.37 billion liters). Trailing Luzon is Mindanao with 21.35 percent or 5.35 billion liters out of the total marked-volume of fuel followed by Visayas at 5.29 percent or 1.32 billion liters. About 24 petroleum companies have so far participated in the fuel marking program. Taking the lead was Petron Corp., cornering 22.36 percent (or 5.6 billion liters) of the total marked fuel. Next is Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.
with 19.31 percent (4.84 billion liters), Unioil Petroleum Philippines Inc. with 10.33 percent (2.59 billion liters), Seaoil Philippines Inc. with 8.13 percent (2.03 billion liters) and Phoenix Petroleum Inc. with 7.94 percent (1.99 billion liters). In February, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda revealed that the government lost P357 billion due to fuel smuggling from 2010 to 2019. While fuel marking helped lower smuggling, foregone revenues are still rising, Salceda said, because the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) law (Republic Act 10963) raised taxes on fuel products in 2018. Fuel marking makes use of a unique chemical marker that can be embedded at a molecular level in petroleum products— gasoline, diesel, and kerosene—thereby enabling authorities to test, identify and distinguish petroleum products with paid excise taxes. Under the Train law, petroleum products that are refined, manufactured, or imported to the Philippines such as, but not limited to, unleaded premium gasoline, kerosene and diesel, shall be marked by an official marking agent after payment of taxes and duties. The fuel-marking program was launched with the aim of halting illegal importation, manufacturing, and other fraudulent activities relating to the use and sale of petroleum products in the country.
Walking in your members’ shoes
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istics and creating them helps OU may have encounyou understand them better tered the phrase or exand, eventually, create a deeppression “take a walk in er connection with them with your customer’s shoes.” Figuratively speaking, it means Association World an extensive understanding of their demographic profile, stepping into your custombehaviors, and pain points. ers’ world to understand and Octavio Peralta 3. I—Identify all your appreciate their needs and/or touch points with members, e.g., your web site, their pain points to serve them better. In the marketing channels (social media, print advercontext of associations, we will change the word tisement, e-mails, partnerships); direct interac“customers” to “members” as members of an tion (landing pages, follow-up e-mails and marassociation are its main customers. keting automation, call centre); customer service I recently attended a webinar entitled “Mem(purchase process, payment, cancellations, inber Digital Journey” organized by Member voicing); indirect contacts (word of mouth, recBoat, an Australia-based digital marketing ommendation sand customer reviews). agency dedicated to helping associations in 4. D—Determine the different stages of their digital transformation initiatives. It was the member journey, typically divided into six presented by its founder and principal consulimportant stages—discovery, consideration, tant, Olena Lima, who outlined a framework of service use (trial), membership, retention, and a workbook called “member journey mapping,” advocacy/contribution—and analyze each of a visual representation of what members go these to map your member’s journey with your through from the moment they have first heard association. about your association to eventually becoming 5. E—Experiment the member journey, loyal and engaged volunteers and ambassadors. identify the gaps, and address any issues. To create a powerful and insightful “members 6. R—Review, validate and repeat. map,” Olena cited the following steps, which I “Walking in your members’ shoes” is maptermed “Guider” for easy recall and reference: ping your member journey to better under1. G—Gather qualitative and quantitative stand your members, as well as to personalise data on your members such as digital data from communication, content and offers based on your existing database, from your web site and where they are. Member journey mapping is a from your social-media account. powerful tool your association can use to creFor instance, analyzing your web site’s user ate a highly personalised member experience flow or user experience is a critical step in data that makes a difference. collection. Web sites are a great source of information about your members’ demographThe column contributor, Octavio ‘Bobby’ Peralta, is concurics, among others. Your membership team is rently the secretary-general of the Association of Development also a rich data source since they talk to your Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific, Founder & CEO of members, listen to their feedback, and know the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executheir main pain points. You can also collect data tives and President of the Asia-Pacific Federation of Associafrom member surveys and forms they fill up. tion Organizations. The purpose of PCAAE—the “association 2. U—Use the collected data to build your of associations”—is to advance the association managemember persona which is a character derived ment profession and to make associations well-governed and from research insights, demographic data, and sustainable. PCAAE enjoys the support of Adfiap, the Tourism member interviews created to represent a comPromotions Board, and the Philippine International Convention mon group of people. Unlike traditional member Center. E-mail: obp@adfiap.org. segments, personas have all human character-
