Mikey defends sale of property in US

MANILA, Philippines - Ang Galing Pinoy party-list Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo said yesterday that the sale of a house in the US reportedly owned by a firm he has a stake in was aboveboard.

Arroyo was referring to a report by Vera Files that a five-bedroom house in Foster City in California was sold for $1.125 million (about P48.5 million) by Beachway LLC, a firm in which he had previously admitted to having a minority stake.

Malacañang and revenue officials said the sale of the US property would not affect the tax evasion case filed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) against the eldest son of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The property was touted by BIR Commissioner Kim Henares as among the pieces of evidence in the P73.8-million tax evasion case against Mikey Arroyo and his wife Angela.

“The article referred to a sale made by Beachway Corporation, a company (in) which I have a personal stake, of a property in the US. What is wrong with that?” Arroyo said.

“The sale was made in an ordinary course of business as our company is engaged in the buying and selling of real estate properties. It is but perfectly normal that we sell properties, otherwise we go out of business,” he added.

Arroyo said the Vera Files story “only confirms that there is an ongoing vilification campaign against me and my family.”

In reaction, Vera Files said the story “is a factual report of a real estate transaction involving a firm owned by someone being accused of tax evasion.”

It added in a statement that Arroyo’s reaction “merely confirms that the transaction took place.”

Arroyo said the story “is yet another attempt to make an issue when there is absolutely none.”

He emphasized that he already issued a statement in 2009 that the property was not personally owned by him.

“The property should not in any way be related to the trumped-up tax evasion case filed against me,” Arroyo said. “It is very clear to me now that this latest article is nothing but part of a bigger campaign to malign me and my family in order to hide this administration’s lack of specific program to address the ever-worsening poverty and hunger, unemployment, rising prices of oil and basic commodities and the exodus of our OFWs affected by conflicts in the Middle East.”

Arroyo said his lawyers have not yet received copies of the charges despite the repeated interviews given by Henares to reporters on the case.

Arroyo’s lawyer Ruy Rodain said he would have preferred that Henares refrained from talking in public about the case since he has yet to receive an official copy of the complaint.

“But that’s her (Henares) right (to talk in public),” Rondain told The STAR.

Palace: Show proof of tax payment

However, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda maintained that the only issue was whether Arroyo paid his taxes correctly or not.

“If you sold something, did you pay the taxes? The question there is simple. He can present his defenses during the preliminary investigation,” Lacierda said in a press briefing at the Palace.

He said Arroyo could not complain that he was not given the required 10-day period to answer the charges.

“That only applies to the civil liability of the case, not to the criminal case,” Lacierda said, adding that the peripheral issues would not matter because the charges filed against him were based on evidence.

He said Arroyo, in saying that the money used to buy the house came from gifts and campaign contributions, sounded like he was using the “Jose Pidal defense,” apparently referring to alleged hidden accounts of the lawmaker’s father, former first gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo.

The older Arroyo was accused of amassing millions while his wife, former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, was in office. The then first gentleman said his brother, Ignacio, owned the accounts.

“The issue is very, very simple here, so whatever defense that you would like to raise, you can raise that before the preliminary investigation in the DOJ (Department of Justice). It’s already before the DOJ now, so you’ll be given time to submit a counter-affidavit to the charges against you in the DOJ,” Lacierda said.

Henares said over radio that the sale of the US property would not affect the case because the basis of filing charges was the younger Arroyo’s statement of assets, liabilities and net worth.

“The fact that he has a property means they earned something. If they sold it, let’s see if they filed income taxes. If they indeed sold (the property), the case may become stronger because he (Arroyo) did not file anything (as regards the house),” Henares said.

She said the tax evasion case covered the years 2004 to 2009, and based on information, the sale of the house happened in 2011.

“Assuming the house was sold in 2008 or 2009 or the years we are investigating… if the house was included in his SALN (statement of assets, liabilities and net worth) the sale only converted it from house and lot so it is still an asset,” the BIR commissioner said, adding that the only effect it might have is the increase in the assessment against Arroyo.

“Because they sold it for gain, these assets will go up so he should have paid taxes. If the corporation was the one who sold it, then it will affect his shares of stock or he gets dividend which will add to his income, and he should pay taxes on that,” she said.

CBCP wants Arroyo to cooperate

Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP)-Public Affairs Committee (PAC) chairman Kalookan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez reminded Arroyo that as a government official, he should be a good example to the people by cooperating in the investigation.

“Since there are accusations lodged against him, he should just cooperate... whether he is guilty or not,” Iñiguez said.

He added if the Aquino administration believed that they have a tight case against Rep. Arroyo then they should pursue the tax evasion case. 

“The Aquino government should do what is right, the right investigation for truth to come out,” the Kalookan prelate added.

‘Get your act together’

Meanwhile, Sen. Francis Escudero reiterated his call to the DOJ to prioritize the tax evasion cases already pending with the courts.

Escudero noted that 36 tax evasion raps have already been filed before the DOJ since the Aquino administration launched its campaign to run after tax cheats last year, but indictments have yet to be handed down.

“The only way that tax evaders will see that the government is serious about this issue is when they see that cases are actually being filed in courts. What is taking the DOJ so long to act on these cases?” said Escudero, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights.

He also challenged the DOJ to speed up its action on the cases to prove that “the President and his administration are really serious about running after tax errants.”

He said the BIR and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) should couple their press statements with appropriate actions, noting how the two agencies jointly announce that they will be filing charges against suspected tax evaders and smugglers.

“This area in the drive against tax evaders should be connected, otherwise the program will just scratch the surface while those tax cheats will just continue laughing all their way to the banks,” Escudero said, urging the BIR, BOC and the DOJ to get their act together. – Aurea Calica, Helen Flores, Christina Mendez, Evelyn Macairan, Iris Gonzalez