RVO: Placing his bet on Phl

International deal maker Roberto “Bobby” Ongpin has been threatening to retire as far back as 10 years ago but because he’s been on a winning streak – he has decided to make another bet –this time on Philippine tourism. Bobby (or RVO as his employees call him) continues to be a sought-after figure whose keen business instincts have helped many of his partners turn huge profits from their investments. Although Bobby spends a lot of his time abroad mostly in Europe and Hong Kong, somehow his best deals always end up in the Philippines, bringing in huge investments that have generated jobs both directly and indirectly. Bobby was the visionary behind Tagaytay Highlands, turning it into an exclusive, high-end resort and country club before he was eased out by former Erap pal Willy Ocier.

The former Trade Minister, who recently turned 74 years old, believes the country has a lot of tourism potential especially with the development of high-end resorts that could compete with what the best of the world have to offer. His latest gamble: he is betting on Balesin, a 424-hectare island off the coast of Quezon province originally owned by the Tordesillas family whose late patriarch Ed Tordesillas was Ongpin’s deputy at the Ministry of Trade and Industry during the ’80s. The white sand property was acquired via Alphaland Corp., a company formed in partnership with the Ashmore Group whose focus is on real estate development and acquisition. The lush tropical island is half the size of Boracay but people privy to development plans say Balesin Island Club could soon become one of the most sought after exclusive resorts worldwide, with themed villages inspired by famous destinations like St. Tropez, Mykonos, Bali, Morocco and Phuket.

Ongpin’s group boasts that environmental sustainability will not be compromised with the installation of ecologically-sensitive alternatives for power generation and water desalination. Bobby’s right hand man and general factotum, Mario “Babes” Oreta, is the big man at the forefront, implementing Bobby’s vision to turn the island into the ultimate destination offering more privacy to guests who want to experience the utmost in relaxation and pampering. The resort will have a Zen-Spa Villa with specialty treatments, a yoga studio, library and other amenities for the health and relaxation needs of guests. Although Bobby owns Philweb (the country’s largest Internet gaming company), he is no gambler himself – and the only things he bets on are businesses which have always been successful and so far have no reported losses in any venture. People say RVO has always had a fantastic Midas touch, and they are keenly watching and wondering if, indeed, this self-made man still has it even in his senior years. His man Babes Oreta counters, “You can bet on it!”

BIR’s new tax regulation

Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares seems hell-bent on raising government revenue and going after tax cheats, issuing a new regulation to uncover the unreported income of private individuals. Revenue Regulation No. 2-2011 will require individuals to file an Annual Information Return (AIR) disclosing sources of income other than salaries, like royalties, dividends, winnings, capital gains from the sale of real property and gains from stocks not traded on the stock exchange. No doubt the new regulation is an outcome of Senate investigations involving former generals like former Army comptroller Jacinto Ligot whose brother-in-law Edgardo Yambao is suspected of being a dummy for Ligot and his wife Erlinda, both accused of acquiring ill-gotten wealth. Yambao reportedly has P225 million in bank accounts although he has not filed income tax returns over the years. Such income and its corresponding interests should have been reported to the BIR through appropriate documents, Henares said – which is why the new rule was issued.

However, a lot of people are criticizing the new regulation, saying it virtually compels non-government employees earning a gross income of P500,000 and above to file a Statement of Assets, Net Worth and Liabilities (SALN) to justify their gross income. Cagayan de Oro Congressman Rufus Rodriguez said that under the law, only government employees are required to file a SALN and if the BIR wishes to impose the new regulation, it should have the National Internal Revenue Code amended. Henares insisted the AIR is different from the SALN, saying the new rule will be “voluntary” for now but will become mandatory next year. All these only goes to show that government needs to seriously study tax reforms not only to get tax cheats but to raise much-needed revenue for the delivery of social services and to fund big-ticket infrastructure projects without selling government bonds. The IMF and other foreign government donors have pointed to the government’s shortcomings in its tax structure. Even if new taxes are raised, there is no guarantee it could translate into higher collections given the loopholes that allow taxpayers to play with the numbers.

One solution would be to impose a strip-stamp system for sin products such as tobacco and cigarette products to monitor their production and distribution – such as the one proposed by a Swiss-based company offering cutting edge technology for the efficient collection of taxes from cigarette manufacturers, something which has been adopted by California, Brazil and Turkey to curb cigarette smuggling . We are told the proposal would enable government to earn an additional P100 billion over a period of seven years – which already represents half the P200 billion that the administration wants to raise from state financing institutions to bankroll its big infra projects.

Spy tidbit

–– Ayala Group’s Fernando Zobel will be launching “I Build” at the Fashion Walk in Greenbelt 5 this Saturday with Habitat for Humanity Ambassadors like “Morning Show Queen” Karen Davila, GMA 7’s Arnold Clavio and Habitat Nation-Builder Ambassadress Kris Aquino. Fernando chairs “I Build,” a four-year initiative of Habitat (Philippines), celebrating 25 years of helping build decent homes for poor Filipino families all over the country.

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