Miriam sponsors committee report today on Road User's Tax

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, chairperson of the Senate economic affairs committee, will sponsor today the committee report on the Road User’s Tax, which recommends the filing of criminal charges against resigned Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. and former Road Board executive director Rodolfo Puno.

Santiago said she wants Ebdane and Puno to answer the Commission on Audit (COA) inquiry over the alleged misuse of about P56.5 million in road users tax.

Santiago said she was forced to include Ebdane in the recommendation for filing of plunder charges because of his mandate as chairman of the Road Board, but she believed it was really Puno who was at fault. 

“Napipilitan tayo dahil chairman siya (Ebdane) ng Road Board. Sa tingin namin sa committee ang talagang may sala ay ang executive director na si Mr. Dodie Puno,” Santiago told radio dzBB yesterday.

“Ang gusto ko lang ay sagutin ninyo ang (I want you to answer) COA. Ilang taon na sila sinasabihan ng (for many years they have been told by) COA, sige lang sila ng sige,” she added.

Santiago said the Senate committee recommended that the Road Board’s budget should be placed under the government’s budget.

She said part of the tax was supposed to go to employment programs, and also for anti-pollution and drainage.

“But how come there was so much destruction in the last typhoons if these drainages were maintained?” she asked.

She said the investigation before the Ombudsman and the COA may continue even if Ebdane and Puno, a brother of Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno, have resigned from their respective posts.

The Senate committee on economic affairs has recommended the filing of plunder charges against Ebdane and Puno for the alleged misuse of P56.5 million of the road user’s tax since 2001.

The Senate economic affairs committee also called for the filing of criminal charges before the Office of the Ombudsman against the members of the Road Board including Danilo Valero of the board secretariat.

In a report filed before the Senate went into recess last Oct. 14, Santiago recommended that the Motor Vehicles User’s Charge Act should either be amended or repealed, in order to provide for the deposit of road taxes with the National Treasury, and for the inclusion of its appropriations in the national budget in order to assure legislative oversight.