Palace to collect VAT on toll

The Aquino administration will push through with the collection of the 12-percent value added tax (VAT) on toll as ordered by the Supreme Court, the President said Tuesday following a meeting with his economic team. “Do we have a choice? No," President Benigno Aquino III said in an interview with reporters after inspecting the newly-acquired BRP Gregorio del Pilar in Manila. “The Supreme Court has already ordered, eh. The VAT should have been collected daw since 1994." He said the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) will hold a series of hearings on the VAT on toll fees to discuss the schedule of implementation, to determine the actual toll rate, and to hear explanations and opposing views. Among his concerns during Tuesday’s meeting was the impact of the implementation of VAT on toll fees, the President added. “Lalabas sa transport sector na ‘yung additional na toll fee na babayaran because of VAT, parang centavos per kilometer. Sa passenger naman sa bus, roughly mga piso per passenger," he said. Estimates by the Department of Finance show that a 12-percent VAT on toll rates — once fully in place — will give government P1.3 billion to P2 billion in additional revenues. The TRB earlier said the VAT on tollway rates will take effect this October 1. — PE/VS, GMA News