Isko's party asks SC to release certificate of finality in Marcoses' P203-B estate tax debt case

The party of presidential candidate Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko” Moreno has requested the Supreme Court (SC) for a Certificate of Finality in relation to the High Court’s 1997 decision on the tax liability of the Marcos family amounting to P203.819 billion.

In his letter to SC Deputy Clerk of Court and Chief of Office Atty. Basilia Ringol dated March 21, Aksyon Demokratiko chairman Ernest Ramel Jr. specifically requested the certificate of finality on the case: “FERDINAND R. MARCOS II, petitioner, vs. COURT OF APPEALS, THE COMMISSIONER OF THE BUREAU OF INTERNAL REVENUE and HERMINIA D. DE GUZMAN (under) G.R. No. 120880 June 5, 1997.”

He noted that the purpose of the said certificate was “to establish that the above-cited case is in fact final and executory and/or entered in the book of entries of judgments.”

Ramel was pertaining to the P203 billion which the heirs of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. owe the Philippine government, to which he has been urging presidential bet Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to pay.

'All politics'

Marcos' spokesperson Atty. Victor Rodriguez on Saturday claimed that the noise about the issue is "all politics."

“It’s not a coincidence that rivals of presidential frontrunner Bongbong Marcos are raising this matter in unison a few weeks before the elections. Sadly, this is all about politics,” he said.

“Our rivals are misdirecting everyone by claiming that the case has attained finality when the truth of the matter is, it is still pending in court and the ownership of the properties in litigation has yet to be settled,” he added.

Rodriguez also previously said the pieces of property which were the subject of the tax case were still under litigation to which the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) had an agreement on.

However, such claims that Marcos Jr.’s family's tax liabilities are under discussion was rebuffed by the PCGG itself.

BIR Commissioner Caesar Dulay had also confirmed that he had already sent a written demand to the family of the late dictator last year regarding their tax liabilities.

The High Court in 1997 denied the petition filed by Marcos Jr. to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals (CA).

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 the late dictator.

Ramel on Sunday demanded that Rodriguez stop “deceiving” Filipinos with allegations “full of arrogance and pride.”

“Ang P203B ng mamamayang Pilipino kung makakatsamba si Marcos Jr. ay siguradong mawawala na lang na parang bula. Kitang-kita ito sa inyong mga kilos, pananalita, kasinungalingan at mga palusot. Tama na, sobra na, Atty. Vic Rodriguez at Marcos Jr. Ibigay na ninyo ang pera sa Pilipino!” he said.

(The P203B of the Filipino will disappear like a bubble if Marcos Jr. wins the presidency. It is evident in your actions, words, lies, and excuses. That's enough, Atty. Vic Rodriguez and Marcos Jr. Give the money to the Filipinos!)

In a separate statement, opposition coalition 1-Sambayan called out Rodriguez for his claim.

“With all due respect to Mr. Rodriguez, there is no pending case. The 1997 Supreme Court decision upholding a judgment ordering the Marcos heirs to pay P23 billion in taxes has long been final and executory. Alleging that the case is still pending without specifying the actual case details sounds like fake news and—if it turns out to be untrue—the worst kind of black propaganda," it said in a statement.

"It is our obligation to keep raising this issue precisely because Marcos Jr. is running for the highest office. The Filipino people cannot afford to have a president who is convicted of tax cases and has unpaid tax obligations, now worth over P200 billion," it added.

Meanwhile, retired SC Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio last Thursday called on the BIR to file criminal cases against the Marcos family for “willfully” refusing to pay their tax liability for almost 25 years now. — with Llanesca T. Panti/KG/BM, GMA News