Malacañang has finally confirmed lawyer Jose Mario Buñag as the permanent commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) in recognition of his sound tax collection and administration strategies, increasing the chances of the agency of hitting its R547 billion collection target for the year.
He is credited for wiping out the huge collection deficits incurred during the first six months of the year during his short stint as officer-in-charge. He used to be a senior and managing partner at Roco Buñag Kapunan Law Offices.
Buñag was the deputy commissioner for legal service when he was named OIC following the July resignation of former BIR commissioner Guillermo Parayno who joined nine other economic managers of President Arroyo in vacating their posts to protest the results of the last presidential election.
He cited revenue district officers (RDOs) who have already collected all their assigned collection targets for the year, including Raul Recto of Pasig, Nelson Traje of Caloocan, Lorna Tobias of Binondo, and Orlando Chio of Tondo.
Assistant Commissioner Gina Trinidad said the tax take has increased since July by about 20 percent, compared to the same period last year.
Buñag said they expect to raise substantial amount from the initial imposition of the Expanded Value- Added Tax (EVAT) and the implementation of the tax amnesty program called the Enhanced Voluntary Assessment Program (EVAP). EVAP alone is expected to generate R2 billion when it ends on Dec. 31.
Quezon City Revenue Regional Director Nestor Valeroso said that the region has raised R14 million from 90 EVAP filers even before the program was officially launched by the bureau last week. Valeroso said the nine district offices of the region are expected to generate R200 million from EVAP.
