According to Seen. Franklin Drills, like what we do in “syntax”, we should also arrange or organize our thoughts to fully understand the benefits of the so called “sin tax bill” signed by our President last December 20, 2012. The sin tax bill had been pending in Congress since 1997 and the President said many had thought it would already be impossible to have it passed due to conflicting interests. The Sin Tax Bill aims to raise additional revenues by increasing taxes in so called “sin products” such as alcohol and cigarettes.
A large part of the revenues that will be collected would go to the government’s health care aerogram and for the construction and upgrade of local and major hospitals nationwide. Tobacco farmers would benefit from the measure in terms of assistance and access to alternative livelihood. In its first year of implementation, the measure is expected to generate for the government additional revenues worth POP. 96 billion, of which POP. 4 billion will come from cigarettes, UP. 06 billion from distilled spirits and UP. 5 billion from fermented liquors.
According to P-Non, we aim to make health benefits available for all, regardless of wealth; the life of Filipinos is sacred. The bill is expected to lessen the number of smokers and alcohol drinkers in the country because of increase prices.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE POLICY
Youth Nowadays, many Filipinos engaged in different vices like smoking and drinking liquors. According to Paul H. Boorish, MSP in his book “The Irreversible Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking”, Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States.
It accounts for almost 500,000 deaths per year, or one in every five deaths. Cigarette smoking contributes to remarkable number of diseases, including coronary heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 46 million smokers in the United States, 34 percent try to quit each year- but less than 10 percent succeed. According to the CDC, approximately 80 percent of current adult smokers began smoking before their 18th birthday. Each day over 3,000 teenagers light up for the first time.
Most teens are aware of smoking hazards, but few are worried about them. Moreover, most teen smokers quickly become addicted to nicotine: They report that they want to quit but are unable to do so. And teen smokers experience high relapse rates and debilitating withdrawal symptoms. The bottom line is that smoking s costly, both to individual smokers and to society as a whole: Recent long term studies indicate that about half of all regular cigarette smokers will eventually die from their addiction.
Better health equates to a more productive workforce and a more inclusive development for the Filipinos. These products can really be addictive and hard to eliminate. But if we can do something to prevent this addiction, we can start from the youth so they can be a good example for the other generations to come. The government approved this bill to somehow discourage the buyers in buying the products. I believe that these reduces are not a necessity and it is not a loss for us, in fact if we continue to use these, it can cause our death.
We can live without the “sin products”. Let us help one another to help promote good health in our country. Government The government is the one who ensures that the laws imposed will only be for the benefit of the people who constitute the country. That is why they approved this law so because they know that it is good for all of us. It can improve the health status of the people and also help improve the economic status of the country. A healthy society is a healthy country.
Although there are people who think that this is such a burden to them, someday they will realize that this helped them in some ways also. Under-resourced Higher prices discourage the under-resourced from continuing their addiction and save them from the significant economic and health burden of tobacco related diseases. And instead of buying cigarettes, this law will surely lessen the death rate of people from these vices and the healthier the people living in our country, the more productive and developed country it will be.
Politicians Increased revenues will translate to higher allocations for Local Government Units LUG) or congressional districts and sustain the needs of their municipalities like improving their roads, bridges and others. It also served as their additional fund. Many children in the provinces are not studying; with this fund they can help parents to send their children to school. Economy Widening and deepening the tax base will lead to improve fiscal health and greater missions, free education for children or drug rehabilitation centers.
Upon higher taxes, it will add to the investments in the country which will lead to the country’s growth and development. Farmers Tobacco farmers in Region 1 trooped to the cemeteries on November 1 and 2, not to visit their departed, but to protest what they called the impending death of the tobacco industry once the sin tax bill is passed into law. According to Angel Gong of the Tobacco Growers Association of the Philippines, the death of the tobacco industry is imminent once the proposed increase on taxes for “sin products”, particularly cigarettes, is signed.
But 1 5 percent of the incremental tobacco revenues will be allotted for programs to support shifting to other alternative and economically viable livelihoods. Tobacco farmers have already been switching to more profitable crops like corn, garlic and tomato. The tobacco industry is considered a “sunset industry’ due to declining land use and crop production. Future of the Filipino People Reduced consumption of sin products will lead to better health outcomes. Better health equates to a more productive workforce and more inclusive development for the Filipino.
Strength
Through this Syntax Law, we reach a level of investment grade/rating that will strengthen our economy because Sin Tax Law has been bringing in expected increased revenues from the sale heavily taxed cigarettes and liquors. They threaten our economy by the means of paying extra taxes when we buy these products. Our economy can compete with other countries because Philippines economy is getting better because they can collect bigger taxes by implementing this law. The law is imposes higher taxes on cigarette and alcohol products for the next five years.
It aims restructure the existing taxes imposed on alcohol and tobacco goods which are a potential revenue source that will help fund the Universal Health Care Program of government. Syntax Law brought higher fund to our government and uses it for constructing roads, building schools, and hospitals for poor and needy also giving scholarships to poor students. The number of scholars increased from 10 of last year to 20 for this year 2013. The scholars are given UP,O for tuition fees and other legitimate school fees plus allowance of UP,800 for four months or IPPP per month per semester.
The incremental sin tax revenues will be used to provide healthcare benefits to poor families, and improve the livelihood of tobacco farmers. The final earmarking is as follows:
After deductions under Republic Act 7171 and 8240, 80% of the remaining balance of the incremental revenues will be allocated for universal healthcare, which will increase enrolment of the poor in the Philippine Health Insurance Corps;
the attainment of Millennium Development Goals; and health awareness campaigns while the 20% shall be allocated nationwide based on political and district subdivisions for medical assistance and health enhancement Department of Health.
Syntax Law also promotes health by discouraging vice. Through increasing the prices of cigarettes and liquors, many people will discourage to buy and we will prevent Lung Cancer and many diseases that users can get. Smoking is responsible for 71% of lung cancer deaths in the world. Consequently, Eng cancer is the leading form of cancer in the Philippines. Department of Health statistics reveal that 10 Filipinos die every hour because of smoking. According to department of Health, a 10% increase in tobacco taxes will reduce the number of smokers by 2 million by 2016.
A significant decline in the number of smokers will likewise reduce the number of smoking-related deaths. Meanwhile, drinking alcohol, though effects are relatively less sever health-wise than smoking, has posed a number of costs on the individual and society. Weaknesses Syntax law can cause big adjustments to the market and to our users because any makers and alcohol drinkers though are poised to adjust on their vices either by reducing the intakes or shifting to cheaper brands or stopping the habit that causes risk to health.
The users should take it away slowly so that it will not harm their health. Businessmen will be slightly affected by the Sin Tax Law because of some adjustments in cigarette and alcoholic drink prices in the first quarter that can reduce sales. It will lessen their income. The market will suffer losses because only few users can afford to buy the products. Only those who people who can afford will be the customers. According to research we have more needy people than the rich one.
As I have noticed after the law had already imposed, many cigarette users are still buying and they don’t even care how much the price as long as their vices cannot be stopped. Another is, President Aquinas is a smoker, and if he is a good leader in our country he should be the first one to stop smoking and served him as a good example. I think this law is quite ineffective. Threats Syntax Law reduce sales/low sales of cigarette and liquor because of its added price, since these products become very expensive only few will buy these products.
Because of this, our vendor will undergo or suffer a big loss especially when selling cigarette and liquor is their only way to survive their everyday living. Syntax Law could affect tobacco farmers because of the possibility of the entry of smuggled cigarettes that will take a toll on tobacco companies. Since the price of tobacco increases the threat of Tobacco Company also increases because fake cigarettes will come out in the market and sold lower price than the original one.
In this case the farmer of tobacco will be lessening some hours of their Job because buyers will patronize the cheaper cigarettes. Bar owners feel threatened by the Syntax law for they believe it would mean less revenue for their business. The Syntax reform law will restructure taxes on tobacco currently in the market to be initially classified according to a 2010 price survey conducted by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIRR), using the suggested retail prices on a sworn statement of the manufacturer or importer.
The prices will be subject to validation by the BIRR, followed by revalidation nine months later. An understatement of 15% or more will make the manufacturer or importer liable for additional excise ax equivalent to the tax due and the difference between the understated suggested net retail price and the actual net retail price. Another is, due to lack of sin products in our country because of higher tax imposed on it; it gives an opportunity to the smugglers to import sin products in our country and sell it to the market illegally. And still the imposition of this law is ineffective.
Opportunities Syntax Law can give more funds to our government. Yes, it may cause big adjustments but the fund that will be collected will give opportunities to our scholars. One of the projects of sin tax law is to give more scholarships to those dents who cannot afford to pursue their studies. Syntax Law also increases the government fund that would become resources in conducting government projects, such as building hospitals and roads that will help people in their daily lives. Our economy becomes more profitable because of this Syntax Law.
It gives more funds to our government, in which these funds are used for our economy. The Philippines can be going through internationally because of our good economy. The Department of Finance (DOFF) has determined the following flaws in the current system of taxing sin reduces: The current system is still under the Price Classification Freeze, wherein old brands are taxed differently from new ones. The system follows a multi-tiered tax structure that is prone to the downshifting of smokers to cheaper cigarette brands (which does not discourage smoking).
The lack of price indexation results to declining tax burdens, as tax is eroded by inflation. In effect, the 2004 effective burden tax price has decreased in 2010 ranging from a 1 percent to 9 percent decrease in tax burden (based on BIRR 4th quarter survey). The taxation of distilled spirits is non-compliant tit World Trade Organization (WTFO) rules. Another is, the total cost of universal healthcare (SUCH) from 2012 to 2016 will amount to IPPP. 1 billion. The national government’s financing requirement for the next five years amounts to a total of IPPP. Billion or a 33 percent share in the CHIC cost. Additional revenues to be brought about by the proposed sin tax reform are being viewed as one of the main sources for CHIC national government financing.
REMEDIAL MEASURES
Syntax Law reduces sales of cigarette and liquor that’s why vendor will undergo some adjustments and loses. But there are some remedies for them not to undergo loses, eke, avoid buying too much cigarettes and liquor, they can also sell some other kinds of products that are in demand in the market to gain profits.
Vendors can also make some tricks or ideas to get more profit or be more profitable with their products. It also affect tobacco farmers because of the entry of smuggled cigarettes that will take a toll on tobacco companies, but if only farmers will be more strict in checking their cigarettes there will be no problem at all. Weaknesses Syntax law was imposed to reduce the intake of sin products like cigarettes and liquor. This law is useless if we, the Filipino people don’t comply with it.
As a good We should also try to learn why this law was imposed, the benefits of complying it, and the importance to our health for us to know what it is all about because most of us are against it not knowing the real meaning of syntax law, and away we all know “Ignorance of the excuses no one. ” We should be thankful because the legislators care about us and they don’t want to suffer their people a disease caused by sin products. We can also prevent air pollution in our surrounding caused by cigarettes. It’s so nice to breathe fresh air in a smoke-free country, and as we all know “It’s more fun in the Philippines”.
