Sadly, it’s still not enough.
“Boxer and Saranggani Congressman Manny Pacquiao has paid the Bureau of Internal Revenue PHP32 million in value-added tax, a separate deficiency tax assessment from the alleged P2.2-billion income tax debts,” reports Jun Ramirez in the Manila Bulletin.
This was revealed by Pacquiao’s lawyer, Jayson Fernandez, on Thursday, Jan 16, before the Court of Tax Appeals. This was during the deliberation on the petition of the solon to nullify the Warrant of Destraint and Levy (WDL) issued by the BIR freezing his bank deposits.
According to the report, the VAT payment was “separate from the PHP2.2-billion deficiency income tax assessment reportedly due from his cash prizes received from four boxing bouts in the United States.” The payment was in addition to the PHP12 million he already remitted. It covered his PHP114-million income received from endorsing 14 products for 2008 and 2009.
The report didn’t specify the exact date of Pacquiao’s VAT payment, but it’s most likely that he did it sometime after his December 21, 2013 meeting with BIR Commissioner Kim Henares.
Photo from Manny Pacquiao’s Twitter page
