RECALLING his listening tour in Dagupan City with transport groups and operators last month, Senator Alan Cayetano in a statement today said that an investigation on the revelation in the national media about unabated oil smuggling in the country, must be made a top priority.

Cayetano said the government could consider lowering the VAT if it is able to collect taxes from the large volume of smuggled oil instead.

The revelation of Petron that about one in every three liters of gasoline or diesel sold in the country is smuggled, results in a revenue loss of P30 to P40 billion a year, and a corresponding increase in oil prices.

“This is an issue that must be at the top of the priority list of the administration because the high costs of fuel impact on one of the biggest concerns of Filipinos: high prices,” Cayetano explained.

He echoed Petron’s view that the resulting loss due to smuggling of oil has a devastating effect on the Philippine economy as it drives up the prices of not only petroleum products but also of basic commodities.

Cayetano recalled the plight of the transportation sector that he met in Dagupan.

“They revealed to me that they are losing more than half of their day’s earnings just to pay for gas and boundary charges leaving them with just a few hundred pesos to take home,” he said.

Cayetano reiterated his call to reduce the application of value-added tax (VAT) on oil. He explained that reducing the VAT on oil will be an effective tool in ensuring that prices of commodities as a whole are driven down – an event that will truly benefit every Filipino family.

“When the price of oil goes down, transportation cost will too. When transportation cost goes down, the prices of commodities will too,” he said.

Cayetano is running under a platform aimed at addressing issues related to PTK: Presyo, Trabaho, Kita.

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