Manila, Philippines – Following the uncovering of the ghost and substandard flood control projects in the country, anomalies and corruption ties among contractors and some officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have been revealed as well.
During the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s flood control probe, the inquiry first centered on the alleged anomalous projects in Bulacan, linking names of three former DPWH engineers of the province namely 1st District engineer Henry Alcantara, and former Assistant District Engineers Brice Hernandez at Jaypee Mendoza.
Aside from the accusations tied with the anomaly itself, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) also took a step to hold the three liable over tax liabilities.
On Thursday, BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. personally filed P1.6 billion criminal charges against Alcantara, Hernandez, and Mendoza over unpaid taxes.
BIR’s lifestyle check revealed that the three individuals’ properties, business, and casino transactions does not match up with their declared income and taxes.
Lumagui emphasized that tax evasion and inaccurate disclosure of income tax returns are punishable under the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997.
In this amount, Alcantara has P900 million tax liabilities, P600 million for Hernandez, while P180 million form Mendoza.
If the tax liabilities are not settled, properties of the three individuals may be seized by the agency.
This is the second batch of criminal charges filed by BIR against individuals tied with the flood control scandal, with 10 cases amounting to over P8.8 billion charged against those allegedly involved in the scheme.
Lumagui underscored that BIR will continue its investigations, assuring that the tax of the people will not fall under the benefit of only a few people.—Mia Layaguin, Eurotv News