Oreta: Suspend issuance of tax credit certificates

Opposition Sen. Teresa Aquino-Oreta urged the Department of Finance yesterday to immediately stop the issuance of tax credit certificates to business entities to prevent the government from losing more money in TCC scams.

Oreta made the appeal a few days after the DOF uncovered yet another irregularity involving such certificates, this time amounting to P82 million.

"The best way to stop these anomalies is to temporarily suspend the issuance of TCCs pending a thorough review of the procedures and guidelines in issuing them," she said.

She said syndicates defrauding the government of billions in tax money by using fake TCCs had been exposed more than three years ago, "but up to now, the DOF is still uncovering more anomalies because it has failed to plug the loopholes in the issuance of these certificates."

Oreta pointed out that the decision to designate Customs Commissioner Antonio Bernardo as the sole signatory of the certificates won’t prevent future scams from taking place.

"The syndicates will still be there, along with corrupt officials colluding with them to defraud the government," she stressed.

Oreta recalled that two yeas ago, when the TCC scam involving the Chingkoe group of companies was exposed in Congress, the DOF made some changes in procedures and moved some people.

But apparently, these measures were not enough and the treasury continues to bleed from scam artists, many of whom are bureaucrats, she said.

It was Misamis Oriental Rep. Oscar Moreno who exposed the P2.5 billion tax credit certificate anomaly involving the Chingkoe group.

In a privileged speech, Moreno accused then Ombudsman Aniano Desierto of allegedly whitewashing the charge that a government task force had filed against the perpetrators of the scam.

A few days after his speech, he filed an impeachment complaint against Desierto. The House, however, threw out the complaint.

According to Moreno, the textile companies belonging to the Chingkoe group were given TCCs on the basis of fraudulent claims. They then sold the certificates for cash to several companies, including Petron and Shell.