Isko's party dares Marcos Jr. to pay P200-billion estate tax; Bongbong camp says case pending

The party of presidential candidate Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno on Thursday dared presidential aspirant former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to pay the estate tax said to be worth P200 billion which the courts have said the Marcos family needed to pay.

In a statement, Aksyon Demokratiko chairman Ernest Ramel said Marcos’ avoidance of paying tax despite having been ordered by the Supreme Court is an abuse of power, disregard for the law, and lack of respect for the people.

“Ang aming hamon kay Marcos Jr. ay bayaran ang naturang obligasyon ayon sa hatol ng Korte Suprema, sagutin ang ilang mga katanungan na paulit-ulit na iniiwasang harapin mismo ng kandidatong ito sa mga debate kung totoong ang layunin niya ay pagkakaisa,” Ramel said.

“Nakakatakot isipin na ngayong hindi pa siya pangulo ay binabalewala na niya ang batas, ang pagharap at pagsagot sa mga sinasabing kasinungalingan niya. Paano na kung maihalal siya?” he added.

Ramel said such a character must not be elected as president.

The high court in 1997 denied the petition filed by presidential candidate and former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals.

In 1994, the CA ruled that ”the deficiency assessments for estate and income tax made upon the petitioner and the estate of the deceased President Marcos have already become final and unappealable, and may thus be enforced by the summary remedy of levying upon the properties” of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Ramel reiterated Moreno’s plan to use the P200 billion for aid while a portion of it could be used to build 17 world-class regional hospitals.

Further, Ramel also questioned the Bangui windmills used by the former senator in his commercials.

He said the project is of the NorthWind Power Development Corporation. It was based on a wind mapping study conducted by US-based National Renewable Energy in 1996.

“Katunayan, ang tanging malalaking proyekto na naipatayo ninyo noong kayo ay gobernador ay halos walang pakinabang sa inyong mga nasasakupan: Ang Dap-Ayan Center at ang Plaza del Norte Hotel and Convention Center,” Ramel said.

“Kung sa siyam na taon ay halos wala kayong mapakitang accomplishments ng pamamahala ng isang probinsya, paano pa ang buong bansa?” he added.

Ramel hit Marcos for repeatedly saying that he had a college degree.

He cited a Bloomberg news article that stated Marcos did not complete a degree but was awarded a special diploma in Social Studies.

“Bakit po kailangang paulit-ulit na ipilit na kayo po ay nagtapos ng college degree pero ito ay malayo naman pala sa katotohanan?” Ramel said.

Marcos' spokesman said the pieces of property which were the subject of the tax case were still under litigation.

"In fact, even  the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) have arrived at an agreement for the BIR to wait for the decision on the said case before any collection enforcement activities and to establish ownership of the subject properties with certainty to determine with accuracy the fair and just tax base to be used in computing estate taxes, if any," Atty. Vic Rodriguez said.

"As to his other allegations, I encourage him to widen his research as these have all been answered by us in the past and it would surely help him come up with a more responsible statement in the future,” he added. —NB, GMA News