Palace unaware of any DOF investigation vs Hefti

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang said yesterday it was not aware of any investigation being conducted by the Department of Finance on resigned Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) chief Lilian Hefti, which supposedly led her to quit.

In an interview over dzRH, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said he knew nothing about the alleged investigation on Hefti as reported by ABS-CBN television last Friday night.

Ermita noted that the resignation letter of Hefti indicated only the problems she experienced in meeting the BIR’s collection targets.

“What I know is that she sent a resignation letter and she said that with all of the problems at the BIR, brought about by the economic crisis, a lot of pressure has been placed on the BIR, especially on her as chairman so her health has been affected,” Ermita said.

“Her resignation would allow the President to choose someone who can help the government in increasing its collections,” Ermita said.

A television report said the DOF is looking into the study tour taken by Hefti in Harvard University in the United States last June to July because of claims that a businessman who was the subject of a tax evasion case financed this.

The BIR has been asking for a revision of its targets for this year and 2009 as it admitted that these could no longer be attained.

The bureau cited the effects of the global financial slowdown and other factors such as the new law exempting minimum wage earners from the income tax and the adjustments in the corporate income tax as some of the reasons why the targets must be revised.

However, while the BIR has failed to meet its targets, the Bureau of Customs, which suffered from collection shortfalls in the past, has now been able to surpass its targets. – Marvin Sy