“The law virtually reversed the situation. Instead us getting tips from passengers, we are now the ones giving tips to our passengers who are senior citizens,” a taxi driver complained.

Thousands of taxi and jeepney drivers from all over the country complained on Thursday about their inclusion in the coverage of the Expanded Senior Citizens Law that grants the elderly 20-percent discount in transport fares.

They said if the government insists on imposing the discount, they might as well not take senior citizens as passengers.

And should the government insist that taxis and jeepneys be covered by the new law, another dilemma facing taxi drivers is a scenario where a senior citizen is accompanied by someone who is not entitled to a discount. How will the senior citizen avail of the 20-percent discount? Will the total taxi fare be the subject of the 20-percent discount or will the total fare be divided into two first before the discount is deducted?

In restaurants where a senior citizen and his companions dine, the discount applies only to the food of the elderly and not the total food ordered by his group.

So how will the discount be treated in taxis? This is something which the framers of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Expanded Senior Citizens Law must consider.

Meanwhile, a taxi driver said that as it is now they barely make both ends meet getting only P400 to P500 earning per day after deducting expenses for gasoline and cab rental fee.

“The law virtually reversed the situation. Instead us getting tips from passengers, we are now the ones giving tips to our passengers who are senior citizens,” he complained.

Likewise, jeepney drivers said they are already losing substantial income from fare discounts granted to students and now comes another discount for senior citizens.

Under the still unsigned revenue regulations of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), all modes of public transportation are required to give the discounts to senior citizens, including mass railway transit, Asian utility vehicles (AUVs), shuttle services, domestic air and water transport services.

The law took effect last Tuesday, but the BIR has yet to issue the implementing rules and regulations.

But newly installed BIR Comjmissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares said the guidelines of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) that gives senior citizens the full 20-percent discount on consumer goods and services was already enforced since May 6.”

She added that the value-added tax exemption on the purchases of senior citizens can already be applied even if the revenue regulations of the BIR have not yet been released.

BIR insiders said the law could not be immediately implemented due to what they described as “defects in the law” that adversely affect the legitimate interests of businessmen and traders.

They cited a provision in the law, which provide that purchases by senior citizens should be value-added tax (VAT) exempt instead of being subjected to “zero-rated” VAT to entitle them to claim input tax or tax credit.

The law grants senior citizens discounts on wide range of goods and services like medicines and professional fees charged by doctors.

However, it does not cover passive income earned by seniors citizens like the 20-percent final withholding tax on interest from their bank deposits and capital gains tax from the sales of share of stocks and real properties.

Previously, senior citizens got only eight-percent discount instead of 10 percent as they were then required to pay the VAT.