BIR checking assets of PDAF scam suspects

MANILA, Philippines – The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is looking into possible tax liabilities of senators and congressmen who may have acquired wealth through the multi-billion-peso pork barrel scam.

Other government officials and personalities identified in a special report of the Commission on Audit (COA) are also being investigated for wealth that their declared income cannot possibly afford.

This was confirmed to reporters by BIR Comm Kim Henares on Thursday, October 24, after her team filed with the justice department several tax evasion complaints not related to the pork barrel scam.

The special COA report covered the release of lawmakers’ Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) through a number of government agencies corporations. These were found to have been channeled to fake non-governmental organizations favored by lawmakers.

Whistleblowers have said that these fake NGOs were endorsed by lawmakers because their principals – like Janet Lim Napoles – gave hefty kickbacks. (READ: P6-B PDAF misused; 192 solons tagged)

Have they been truthful in SALNs?

Henares said the ongoing BIR probe has been limited because they are not armed with a court order to look into bank accounts.

The justice department has filed plunder and other corruption complaints with the Ombudsman against only 38 government officials and private individuals – not all the 192 solons tagged in the COA report.

The Ombudsman has yet to recommend the filing of cases with the Sandiganbayan.

Henares said the BIR is instead looking into other assets of these lawmakers. She noted that illegally acquired wealth are usually undocumented transactions, leaving investigators with little paper trail to start with.

Rappler has examined the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth of a few respondents in the plunder complaints with the Ombudsman and found possible discrepancies between their known sources of income and their declared wealth:

• Wack Wack house: More questions on Jinggoy’s SALN
• Gigi Reyes owns 10 properties worth P50M
• Was Revilla’s Senate staff truthful in SALN?

The BIR earlier filed tax evasion cases against suspected pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Napoles and her husband Jaime, and their US-based daughter Jeane Napoles.

On Thursday, the justice department formally requested the Department of Foreign Affairs to cancel the passports of individuals named in the plunder and corruption complaints in relation to the pork barrel scam. – Rappler.com