A day after criticizing the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office for scrimping financial assistance for sick Filipinos, Albay Rep. Joey Salceda assailed the State-run lottery agency yesterday for appealing for more funds to support its charity programs.
“The answer is no,” Salceda said as he lambasted PCSO Vice President and General Manager Royina Garma for urging the House to restore the tax-exempt status granted to the PCSO since its creation over half a century ago.
The PCSO charity fund suffered after the Duterte government implemented the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law that put an end to the tax privilege by imposing 20 percent tax on its sales and cash prizes.
The double whammy of taxes has reportedly forced many lotto bettors to stop patronizing the State-run lottery.
Garma appealed for the restoration of the tax-free privilege after lawmakers led by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman noted that PCSO spends more for taxes than in funding its charity programs.
“Your charity funding is much lower than your tax obligations. Don’t you think you should be exempted from taxes?” said Lagman.
Garma agreed that the PCSO earnings should be tax-exempt.
She disclosed that in 2018, P33.6 billion went to prizes, P16.7 billion went to tax payments, and P9 billion funded the PCSO charity programs.
“They are asking too much far more than they could chew. Assuming they retain the P26 billion. They don’t have the delivery system to efficiently and effectively in terms of targeting poor patients or simply the processing an expansive constituency given that they are organized only at provincial level,” Salceda claimed.
He added: “Their charter states clearly that they should undertake “individual medical assistance.”
However, during last Friday’s budget briefing for the House Committee on Appropriations, Salceda asked Garma to explain why the PCSO’s average financial assistance per person was reduced from P19,000 to P16,000.
Actually, PCSO assistance even to persons with suffering from serious illnesses and financially draining medical procedures go down as little as P8,000, it was gathered. (Ben Rosario)
