In the wake of complaints from numerous taxpayers, Malacañang is counting on the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to properly explain to the public about the new electronic filing of income tax returns (ITRs) to avoid confusion and decide whether or not to extend the April 15 deadline.
It is up to the revenue collecting agency, however, to decide whether to extend the deadline of the filing period by three months as proposed by Senator Bam Aquino, according to Presidential Communications Operations Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr.
“’Yun pong unang tanong hinggil sa panukala ni Senador Aquino, mainam po sigurong tugunan ito mismo ng BIR dahil sila po mismo ang nakakaunawa ng kasalukuyang sitwasyon, at kung kailangan ba talagang palawigin pa ‘yung panahon para dito (On the question about the proposal of Senator Aquino, it might be better if the BIR will address this because it understands the present situation and know if there is really a need to extend the filing period),” Coloma said over government radio.
“Sila po ang mayroong impormasyon na magsisilbing batayan sa pagtugon sa panukalang ‘yon (The BIR has the information that will serve as basis to address that proposal),” he added.
Asked about the need to step up information drive about the e-filing system, Coloma insisted that the BIR is already doing its job.
Manila Bulletin
