On Thursday, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian stated that he is considering raising taxes on the wealthy in order to bring in more revenue for the government.
Gatchalian stated during an interview on Dobol B TV that it is odd that the nation’s billionaires were not one of its top taxpayers.
“Makikita natin may lumalabas na billionaires list… Wala dun sa mga pangalang iyon ang top taxpayers natin,” said Gatchalian.
(When you check the billionaires’ list, none of them were named top taxpayers.)
Gatchalian further pointed out that the majority of the nation’s highest taxpayers are TV and movie stars. “Pero yung mga nasa billionaires list, wala kang makikita doon [sa listahan ng top taxpayers]. Doon ka magtataka,” he said.
(But those on the billionaires’ list are not on the list of top taxpayers. That’s hard to believe.)
Gatchalian stated that he intends to introduce legislation to increase taxes on the wealthy and raised the possibility that other legislators would support it.
“Meron talagang dapat ayusin sa sistema natin para yung mga may kaya o yung mayayaman ay mas mataasan naman ang kanilang bayaran,” he said.
Higher taxes for wealthy Filipinos eyed
(Something needs to be corrected in the system so that the wealthy pay more taxes.)
“Walang magagawa kung salita nang salita pero di maghahanap ng pondong mapagkukunan,” he added.
(We’ll accomplish nothing by just talking and not finding ways to look for funds.)
According to Forbes World’s Billionaires List for 2022, business mogul and former politician Manny Villar retained his position as the country’s wealthiest person.
Villar is joined on the elite list by 19 other Filipinos, up from 17 last year.
According to Forbes, Manny Villar’s projected net worth increased to $8.3 billion this year, more than $1 billion more than his stated total assets of $7.2 billion in 2021.
The real estate mogul is now rated 263rd among worldwide billionaires, significantly increasing from his previous ranking of 352 last year.
Manny Villar is the founder and CEO of Vista Land & Lifescapes, a real estate and retail development company. He is also the chairman of VistaMall, a mall operator.
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