Cabinet ordered to review finances

Take a look at this news on Aquino's order to revisit the Philippine government finances:


MANILA, Philippines - In his first full day in office yesterday, President Aquino ordered his Cabinet to review the government’s financial status as well as its programs and personnel to determine the exact state of the country left by his predecessor, now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Already stuck with a record budget deficit, Mr. Aquino has accused Arroyo of painting an unrealistically rosy picture of the economy to burnish her legacy after nearly 10 years in office.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said Mr. Aquino gave the marching orders during their first meeting on Wednesday although he had relayed the same message to his officials in his inaugural address.

“During the meeting it was agreed all departments will conduct an inventory of all assets within their departments and attached agencies to determine what assets can be privatized in the future to support (the administration’s) programs,” Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said.

Mr. Aquino earlier said his administration would implement “zero-based budgeting” in which every department’s allocation would be reviewed comprehensively, before any increase is made.



All expenditures must also be justified before approval, Mr. Aquino had stressed.

The President said he would be hands-on in preparing the budget just as he had been meticulous in scrutinizing appropriation bills when he was still congressman and then senator.

He said he did not like wastage and that he would go through the budget of each department with a fine-tooth comb.

Purisima said in a press conference Wednesday that Mr. Aquino had instructed the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to proceed with zero budgeting for the 2011 fiscal cycle.

He said all the departments had been asked to assist the DBM in implementing this change by identifying top priorities to facilitate the process.

The finance chief said Mr. Aquino has asked Cabinet members to submit a report in two weeks on the status of departments, particularly on how much was spent and how much was left. The report should also include the outstanding programs that needed to be reviewed or supported.

Plugging tax loopholes

Purisima also said President Aquino’s priority is to ensure that revenue agencies such as the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) meet their targets.

Purisima said they would review the performances of the personnel of these agencies and would use information from the National Economic and Development Authority and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to help the BIR and BOC set better and attainable targets.

Purisima said they would improve the application of the Lateral Attrition Law and make meritocracy work in those two revenue-collecting agencies.

“The third is bringing in good people in government,” Purisima said.

“Leadership by example in simple things such as sirens, hopefully with this we can create tipping points so even the citizenry will help us weed out the corrupt in these two agencies,” Purisima said. “Within the next few weeks we would already see the first actions in this area.”

However, he clarified that this would not necessarily mean filing of cases against tax evaders and smugglers but more on sending a message that “this administration means business.”

Purisima said they need not overhaul the agencies but simply implement the Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS), Run After Tax Evaders (RATE) unit and the BOC’s Run After The Smugglers! (RATS) unit more aggressively.

“We have a very capable secretary of Justice and our handicap in the past was the inability of Department of Justice to properly process our complaints and get to the judiciary,” Purisima said.

Purisima said he had discussed with Justice Secretary Leila de Lima what could be done so that charges could be filed and upheld by the courts.

“We are not sure whether we can file some cases next week, but certainly the mandate is to send a very clear signal to the revenue-collecting agencies as well as taxpayers that this administration means business,” Purisima said.

“This will be a full-court press, it will be unrelenting, until we believe we have achieved a tax effort that is commensurate to what our legal system provides for,” he said.

Purisima likewise announced that Mr. Aquino would want to reduce the deficit and narrow it down to two percent of gross domestic product in three years.

“We are not targeting a balanced budget, which we believe is not necessary at this point to support programs like conditional cash transfer in education and agriculture. Being more efficient on expenditure and revenue sides, that is our goal,” Purisima said.

He also appealed to the public, especially businessmen, to pay the right taxes.

“Hopefully private sector will be more careful in being part of tax evasion or smuggling. The President keeps pointing to his analogy of a pail with a lot of holes (and) we have to plug these holes,” Purisima said.

“You have the assurance of the new administration that the quality of governance will be better than the past. Our goal is to be as transparent as possible and to make sure that the money of the public is spent wisely,” Purisima said.

Purisima said Mr. Aquino’s campaign slogan of “walang mahirap kung walang corrupt (there are no poor where there are no corrupt) is not just a campaign pitch.

“That’s an appeal to our fellow Filipinos. You cannot just sit in your living room and say how you can improve the efficiency of tax collections. The bureaucrats will have to step up on this,” Purisima said.

“We are appealing to the people and businessmen that if we want President Noynoy to succeed, to have a better country, you have no choice but to pay what is due,” Purisima said.

The President, a 50-year-old economist, took office on Wednesday with a vow to lift the country out of poverty and wipe out crippling corruption that he said thrived under the Arroyo administration.

The government has incurred a P162.1-billion budget deficit in the first five months, and analysts say the full-year funding gap is likely to surpass P300 billion.

New AFP chief

Meanwhile, President Aquino will lead today the inauguration of Northern Luzon Command chief Lt. Gen. Ricardo David Jr. as the 41st chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Arnulfo Burgos Jr. said the change-of-command ceremony would be held at 10 a.m. at the parade grounds of Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City. This will be Mr. Aquino’s first visit to the AFP General Headquarters as commander-in-chief.

Burgos said the ceremony would also be attended by newly installed Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.

David succeeds acting AFP chief Lt. Gen. Nestor Ochoa, who assumed the post after former chief of staff Gen. Delfin Bangit opted for early retirement last June 22 after Mr. Aquino announced that he would not be retained as AFP chief.

Burgos said Ochoa may be given another military post.

“After the turnover rites, a command conference will be held and it will be attended by all area commanders and other officers of the AFP. It is customary that such conference is held after the assumption of the new chief of staff,” Burgos said.

Burgos confirmed that there would be changes in the leadership of key military posts but declined to elaborate.

“There will be a lot of movements,” he said in Filipino.

Gazmin, meanwhile, defended David from criticism that his appointment was political payback.

Gazmin said David was chosen for his capabilities and not due to his close links with Mr. Aquino’s mother, former President Corazon Aquino, whom he served as member of the Presidential Security Group.

“I know him (David) to be very hardworking. His only liability is he was a former PSG. He is from Tarlac and the President is from Tarlac so his appointment was linked to various issues,” Gazmin said in am ambush interview.

“But let us look at the service reputation and capability of the man,” he added.

Burgos, for his part, described David as “very professional and competent.”

“We are very confident that with his able leadership, the organization will be moving forward and achieve its mission,” the AFP spokesman said.

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