By Jefferson Antiporda, Reporter
BUREAU of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares disclosed on Wednesday thather office had no records of Chief Justice Renato Corona’s income tax returns (ITR) from 2002 to 2010.
She said, however, that there was nothing irregular about the chief magistrate’s failure to file his ITR.
Henares told the Senate impeachment court that the Chief Justice did not need to file his ITR because he was on the “alpha list” of the Supreme Court.
The list contains the names of employees and how much tax was withheld from their income.
Henares explained that section 51 of the Internal Revenue Code allows a person whose sole income issubject to withholding tax not to submit an ITR.
However, she said that her bureau only had records of Corona’s income and withholding tax from 2006 to 2010.
Based on the records, Corona in 2006 had a gross income of P465,000 and withholding tax of P109,706. In 2007, his income was P488,156 and tax withheld was P117,399. In 2008, his income was P604,388, and withholding tax was P154,057; 2009, P621,528 and tax withheld was P155,556; 2010, P657,755 and withholding tax, P176,577.
Henares said that the High Court failed to submit alpha lists from 2002 to 2005.
However, in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth, Corona declared a net worth of P9.5 million in 2006, P11 million in 2007, P12 million in 2008, P12 million in 2009, and P22.9 million in 2010.
Editorial
Movement 188’s ‘sinister’ campaign all part ofgame
The 188 congressmen who signed the impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Renato Corona have launched Movement 188.
They will give speeches to their constituencies to persuade them that Chief Justice Corona deserves to be removed from the High Court. They will tell their people in the provinces that CJ Corona has betrayed the public trust, committed culpable violation of the Constitution and graft and corruption as specified in the haphazardly constructed complaint they signed and claimed to have personal knowledge of.
In a statement the Movement 188 congressmen say:
“As signatories to the resolution that paved the way to the ongoing Senate trial, it behooves us to fully explain to our people the big picture of the Corona trial lest they fall for the smoke and mirrors legal tricks that magicians masquerading as defense lawyers have shrewdly unleashed in the impeachment court to derail the proceedings and divert public attention from the evidence ofwrongdoings presented by the House prosecutors this early—all pointing to the Chief Justice’s untenable stay at the helm of the Supreme Court.”
Their “grassroots campaign” will make the people keep their eyes on the big picture.
“The big picture is that the impeachment trial is not an attack on the justices or the Judiciary itself, but a constitutional process meant to make top officials—in this case, the Chief Justice—accountable to our people and to restore the High Court to its erstwhile glory as an ardently independent, highly credible and greatly respected co-equal branch ofgovernment.”
Not a pissing contest
It is necessary for the 188 congressmen to campaign against CJ Corona because the defense lawyers might be enthralling the people. So the 188 signatories must make the people realize that “ impeachment is a constitutional process…and not a pissing contest or athletic game to be judged by which between the prosecution and defense panels has the smarter lawyers and better legal ploys every trial day, but is a charter-mandated trial that has to ascertain at its end which side can prove that the Chief Justice is guilty or not of the charges.”
The 188 Movement’s statement attacks the defense lawyers for having succeeded in creating the illusionof CJ Corona’s innocence. “Like magicians, the hotshot defense lawyers have from Day 1 turned to court rules and motions as smoke and mirrors to bedazzle the public on live TV with their legal acumen and foist upon them the illusion of Corona’s innocence in the face of evidence thus far presented by the House prosecutors pointing to his betrayal ofpublic trust in fudging his SALN (Statement ofAssets, Liabilities and Net worth) declarations and owning ill-gotten wealth.”
Mobilization for People Power 3
Some are worried that this campaign is a mobilization drive for “People Power 3.” They think so because allies have admitted that President Benigno Aquino 3rd gave them marching orders to impeach CJ Corona. And the President himself has described the impeachment as “one of the brightest moments” of his Liberal Party. He has not hidden his profound wish to see CJ Corona kicked out. All these make it believable that if the prosecution loses in the impeachment court, or even if the Chief Justice loses but the senator-judges decide that he needs only to be censured (as we reported Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago to have said in our page 1 banner yesterday), then the Palace will give the go signal to use People Power to force Mr. Corona to leave the High Court.
That would be a great disaster. So far, enlightened opinion has been saying that whatever the senator-judges’ verdict would be, this impeachment trial is good for Philippine democracy. It offers the people lessons in democratic theory and practice.
To us, the Movement 188’s campaign is actually an extension of the great drama of this impeachment activity. Whatever the congressmen say to their constituents will also give the public lessons in democracy. For unless these congressmen are all like the gorillas in the “Planet of the Apes” they will frame their anti-Corona speeches in language that at least the brighter constituents will appreciate as political argumentation. These speeches will probably be more intelligent than the stupid ones these congressmen gave when they were campaigning for office.
We think the Movement 188’s drive to “campaign” is just part of the old game that politicians play. For one thing it gives the Liberal Party people a reason to campaign for Secretary Mar Roxas for the next presidential election this early. Why do you think has the Liberal Party’s defeated candidate for vice-president in the 2010 elections been taking a high profile in berating Mr. Corona? Hasn’t he been glowing in his—and President Aquino’s—party’s “brightest moment.”
Rep. Tupas doing a great job
And speaking of the Liberal Party, Chief of the impeachment prosecutors Congressman Neil Tupas is reported to be the object of a resign call by some people, including allies of the President, who are disgusted by the ineptness and lack of preparationof the prosecutors. We don’t agree with them.
Tupas is doing a great job boosting the Liberal Party in the impeachment trial. The underdog image of the prosecution produced by Rep. Tupas’ high-pitched voice, the panel’s frequent scolding by Senate President Enrile and other senators, the seeming lack of a plan cannot be anything but a masterfully orchestrated act to support the Aquino-Liberal Party thrust to continue portraying former President Gloria Arroyo as the power behind all the evil forces in our country—including respondent Renato Corona.
This portrait of the Philippine situation is the frame against which the President is able to explain the difficulties of governing our country. It helps him continue being beloved by 70 percent-plus of our people. It will frame the next elections. And it will show why the impeachment is one of the Liberal Party’s brightest moments.
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