(January 28, 2022) – A poll body official said a receipt submitted by the only son and namesake of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos as proof he had paid his income tax deficiencies was fabricated, one of the basis for disqualifying him from running in the May 2022 elections.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Rowena Guanzon’s claim is accurate.
A reproduction copy of the receipt was made into a meme, causing some buzz on social media platforms. Some netizens shared a copy of the receipt from the Marcos camp to show the former senator tried to cheat his way once more.
Guanzon claimed the receipt which was submitted by Marcos was for some “lease rental” from the Land Bank of the Philippines and not payments for his income tax deficiencies which a lower court had ordered him to settle in 1995.
Lawyer Theodore Te, who represented former political prisoners in another petition to cancel Marcos’ certificate of candidacy, has secured a certification from the courts that Marcos never settled his income tax returns, including its penalties.
Guanzon, in her decision, said Marcos should be disqualified from running for a public office because he was convicted of a crime of moral turpitude. The non-payment of taxes is considered a crime of moral turpitude.
Some people tried to defend Marcos, saying the number on the receipt matched with the number of an internal revenue form used for payment of certain taxes.
But the print of the form does indicate that it is used for payment of lease rentals, and nothing that indicated that the receipt was used for any other purpose.
CLAIM:
On Thursday, Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon leaked to the media that she voted in favor of disqualifying former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos over his repeated failure to file income tax returns from 1982 to 1985 during his gubernatorial stint, which she deemed a crime of moral turpitude.
Guanzon told Rappler and CNN Philippines that the receipt submitted by the Marcos camp to show that he paid his deficiency taxes were instead for payment of lease rentals, as she and her lawyer found out.
Reacting to the commissioner’s statement, netizens quickly posted an image showing the said receipt, proving Guanzon’s point. But other netizens questioned this, pointing out that the “0605” under the account symbol in the photo refers to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) payment form.
RATING: ACCURATE
FACTS:
The copy of the receipt came from the Marcos camp, as published by CNN Philippines on Facebook on December 4 last year. The Marcos camp claimed that he had complied with the payment on his tax conviction, paying P67,000 in tax liabilities in 2001.
The template of the receipt indicates that it is used for payment of lease rental, and nothing in the receipt indicated that it was used for other purposes.
While BIR form 0605 is used more broadly for payment of fees that do not require the use of a tax return such as registration fees, deficiency taxes and penalties, the term “account symbol” does not refer to the number of the BIR form.
WHY IT MATTERS:
The copy of the receipt has been circulating on social media, with some of the tweets on either camp reaching hundreds or thousands of likes. (MM)
News5 is part of #FactsFirstPH which brings together various sectors that are committed to promoting truth in the public space, and exacting accountability on those who harm it with lies.
Our Privacy Commitment
TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.
We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.
Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?
We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:
Where do we get your personal information?
There are several ways we collect your personal information.
Information that you personally provided.
Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
Information we collect during your engagement with us
We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
Information we collect from other sources
Other means of collection of information may be through:
When do we disclose personal information?
There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.
We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.
In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.
How we protect your personal information
The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.
We also put in effect the following safeguards:
TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.
What are your choices?
We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.
If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.
Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph
What happens when there are changes in our Policy?
From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.
You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.