water everywhere... but not for drinking. Boys play basketball in floodwaters from a swollen creek at a coastal village in Malabon on July 8, 2015. According to UN-Water, the United Nations interagency coordination mechanism for all freshwater-related issues, 1.8 billion people use a source of drinking water contaminated with feces, putting them at risk of contracting cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio. World Water Day, celebrated on March 22 every year, aims to tackle the water crisis, including sanitation, water-related disasters, emergencies and other extreme events, and their impact on human security. AP/Aaron Favila
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Thursday, March 23, 2017 Vol. 12 No. 162
U.S. AGRI UNIT SEES DROP IN PHL RICE OUTPUT
Farmers to dump rice for corn when QR ends
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By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas
@jearcalas
he country’s paddy-rice output could decline to below 18 million metric tons (MMT), after the quantitative restriction (QR) on rice is scrapped on June 30, according to a Global Agriculture Information Network (Gain) report.
18 MMT The projected PHL paddy-rice output in marketing year 2017-2018, according to the US Department of Agriculture
The Gain report, which was published by the US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) in Manila, noted that the expiration of the rice QR could result in the displacement of See “Farmers,” A2
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Prosperity without progress Rene E. Ofreneo
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rosperity Without Progress. This is the title of the book (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984) of Norman Owen on life in the Bicol region from the last century of Spanish colonialism up to the early decades of American rule. In this period, abaca, better known then as “Manila hemp”, exploded in the world market. This ushered in a modicum of prosperity to the residents of the abaca-growing communities for nearly a century. However, after the collapse of the industry in the 1930s due to the rise of the synthetics, these communities became impoverished. There were no alternative industries and livelihoods developed during the heyday of the abaca-export boom. There was temporary prosperity for the abaca-industry participants, but no sustainable progress for the Bicol region as a whole. Continued on A10
BIR files ₧9.56-B tax case vs Mighty Corp. By Rea Cu
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he Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) filed a P9.56billion tax-evasion case against local tobacco firm Mighty Corp. before the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Wednesday over the company’s reported use of fake tax stamps. According to the BIR, those included in the complaint were Mighty Corp. President Edilberto P. Adan, Executive Vice President Oscar P. Barrientos, Vice President for External Affairs and Assistant Corporate Secretary Alexander D. Wongchuking, and Treasurer Ernesto A. Victa. They were charged for unlawful possession of articles subject to excise tax without payment of the tax, and for possessing false, counterfeit, restored or altered stamps, in violation of Sections 263 and 265 (c) of the National
Internal Revenue Code of 1997. “As a consequence of its acts and omissions, Mighty Corp., together with its responsible corporate officers, is liable to pay an estimated aggregate excise-tax liability in the total amount of P9.564 billion,” a statement from the BIR said. The bureau is pursuing the case under its Run After Tax Evaders program. Earlier in the month, the Burea of Customs (BOC), together with examiners from the BIR, conducted raids in warehouses in General Santos City, Zamboanga, and Pampanga, which led to the seizure of cigarette packs bearing fake tax stamps. Five of the warehouses raided in the Pampanga area were reportedly subleased to Mighty Corp. The BOC and the BIR estimated revenue losses from nonpayment of excise taxes amounting to P1.1 billion, based on the value of the
As a consequence of its acts and omissions, Mighty Corp., together with its responsible corporate officers, is liable to pay an estimated aggregate excisetax liability in the total amount of P9.564 billion.”—BIR
seized products. The operation in Zamboanga City yielded 400 master cases of counterfeit smuggled cigarettes, with an estimated street value of P13.5 million. For the raid in General Santos City, the authorities were able to seize 11,044 master cases of assorted cigarettes, w ith approx imate street value of P215 million. In the Pampanga raid, 62,000 master cases, containing over P1.957 billion worth of assorted cigarettes, were seized.
The mere possession of the seized tobacco products with fake internal-revenue stamps violates the Tax Code, according to the BIR. Mighty Corp., through its legal counsel Sigfrid A. Fortun, said the company “welcomes the filing by the BIR of the complaint, as it provides us an opportunity to clear our names and show we violated no tax laws. We will continue to cooperate with the government in its continuing effort at tax collection.”
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See “BIR,” A2
Source: BSP (22 March 2017 )