MANILA-Leaders from various cause-oriented and civil society organizations have called for a wealth tax and a 750-peso legislated daily wage increase ahead of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July.
“For a long time, our labor and mass movement has been asserting that the global worsening of inequality is not a natural occurrence, but rather the result of political decisions made by governments in many countries worldwide,” the Asian Peoples’ Movement for Debt and Development (APMDD) said in a statement.
APMDD, along with Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), Oriang, SUPER Federation, Freedom From Debt Coalition, Teacher’s Dignity Coalition (TDC), and Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM), held a forum on June 29, 2024, in Quezon City to consolidate the demands for a wealth tax and wage increase.
“These decisions favor large corporations and the wealthy and run counter to the interests of workers and the masses. One way elitist governments favor their own kind is through the tax system. The Philippines has a regressive tax system: in 2021, 22% of national internal revenue – the largest portion collected that year – came from Value-Added Taxation (VAT), while corporate income tax contributed only 17% to the revenue stream,” it added.
According to the group, another 20% was also collected from various taxes on essential goods, such as petroleum excise tax.
“In the context of global inequality, labor and mass movements in many countries advocate for a wealth tax as part of reversing elitist tax systems. A wealth tax is levied on the total value of all assets owned by the wealthiest individuals in a country,” it added.
Among the group leaders who joined the forum were Leody de Guzman, president of PLM; lawyer Luke Espiritu, president of BMP; Benjo Basas, chairperson of TDC; and Jeannie Manipon, senior program manager of APMDD. (PR/APMDD)
Photo by Jimmy Domingo
