Tax lawyer named BIR chief

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang has named lawyer Sixto Esquivias IV as the new Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) chief in place of Lilian Hefti, who resigned early this month.

Esquivias, a 52-year-old taxation lawyer and a taxation professor at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, will assume his post as the new BIR commissioner by November, Finance Secretary Margarito Teves said yesterday.

He was with the BIR for 23 years until he resigned in 2000.

A graduate of the Ateneo Law School, Esquivias rose from the ranks, starting as an examiner and rising to become deputy commissioner.

He also served as consultant to Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile and to Sen. Ralph Recto on various tax issues.

Esquivias said his experience at the bureau gives him a home court advantage over other candidates short-listed for the position.

“There’s a lot of catching up to do but I will be able to hit the ground running because of my experience with the bureau in the past. I worked inside and outside the fence,” he said.

Government sources said the others who had been considered for the job were former deputy commissioner Kim Henares, who served under commissioner Guillermo Parayno Jr., and former Customs commissioner Antonio Bernardo.

Hefti resigned two weeks ago citing health reasons, although talk circulated that she had been removed from office due to her failure to meet collection targets and her rumored discordant relationship with the Department of Finance (DOF), the BIR’s parent agency.

This year, the BIR is tasked to collect P845 billion but the tax agency has perennially fallen short of its monthly revenue goals.   

Asked about his specific plans for the bureau to be able to meet collection targets, Esquivias said there are no concrete measures yet on the table.

However, he said he intends to meet with agency officials soon to assess the existing measures and map out future programs.

Hefti was appointed officer-in-charge of the BIR in July 2007. 

She took her oath as BIR chief in September last year, replacing former BIR commissioner Jose Bunag.