EDITORIAL - How Congress can redeem itself

There are in Congress right now -- at least three in the House of Representatives and one in the Senate -- several pending bills seeking to reduce the amount of personal income taxes from the current 32 percent to anywhere from 15 percent to 25 percent.

The bills are well founded. The Philippines is one of the poorest nations in Asia. The high economic marks President Aquino keeps telling everyone is not inclusive, meaning the poor do not share in that wealth. Despite their grinding poverty, Filipinos are saddled by one of the highest income tax rates in the world.

Proponents of the bill also have very sound arguments. The proposed tax cuts translate into palpable savings that people can plow back into the economy by means of investments and spending. What the government loses in taxes it can regain by an economy made robust by real money in people's hands.

But there is one more reason that will ultimately prove more compelling than all the others, and it is that by passing a hefty tax cut measure, such as reducing the present 32 percent income tax to just 15 percent, Congress can give back to the people what it had been taking away from them for so long.

Right now, Congress is a damaged institution. Its credibility is at an all-time low on account of the pork barrel scam. The scam exposed years and years of people's money being stolen in the billions by those who are supposed to be the people's representatives.

The proposed tax cuts provide Congress with precisely the golden opportunity to make amends with the people from whom its "honorable" members have stolen for so long. If Congress wants to redeem itself and earn back some of its lost credibility, then it should give back to the people what it has stolen.

And the best way to give back what it has stolen is to give the people the opportunity to enjoy what they have worked so hard for -- by approving hefty tax cuts on their income taxes. This is the best tit-for-tat formula that the government and the governed can exchange in a manner that is legal and civilized.

If Congress is able to pass the measure, it certainly will earn the renewed respect of the people and will be on its way to healing itself. The ball is now in the hands of Congress and it is hoped it is up to what could be its greatest challenge -- atonement and redemption.