The News Today Online

Price monitoring up on non-EVAT goods

By Maricar M. Calubiran and Erly C. Garcia

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Iloilo will conduct daily price monitoring in the key trading centers in the province as well as city of Iloilo to prevent unscrupulous businessmen from taking advantage of the recently implemented Expanded Value Added Tax (EVAT) Law.

DTI Provincial Director Diosdado Cadena said the daily price report will be made available to the public through the tri-media. With this, consumers could check whether the business establishment is overpricing or not.

Cadena said DTI-Iloilo will also maintain a 24-hour hotline (335-01-49) to receive complaints regarding illegal price increases.

Cadena said with the imposition of the EVAT they expect some businessmen to take advantage of the situation by jacking up their prices even though their product is not covered by the new tax law.

Cadena had also sought the chiefs of local government units to activate their own local price monitoring councils to help in the monitoring of prices.

DTI clarified that agricultural products are still exempt from the EVAT while the processed goods were already covered by the old VAT law.

The Iloilo City government for its part has activated its local price monitoring council composed of representatives from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), City Agriculture Office (CAO) and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

He said the team will conduct regular inspections in public markets as well as commercial establishments.

DTI is tasked to monitor manufactured goods while the CAO would check on the prices of agricultural products.

The creation of the local price monitoring team was in response to the directive of Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Angelo Reyes for all the local government units to create their respective local price monitoring team. The local price monitoring team will help prevent unwarranted increased in the prices of basic goods which are not covered by the adjustments.

Treñas added that billboards bearing prices of goods would be set up in the city's different markets to reflect the current prices of goods. The city will place two billboards in each market. A 'kilohan ng bayan' will also be installed to prevent cheating.

He said, the local price monitoring team will conduct daily inspections but they will submit their report weekly.

The chief executive said the traders should not take advantage of the implementation of the EVAT. He said, there are basic goods that are not subject of the adjustment.

Among those covered by EVAT are services such as those rendered by lawyers, doctors and movie and television stars and the gasoline and other petroleum products.

The Expanded Value Added Tax was supposed to take effect beginning July but was implemented only last November 1 following the lifting of the Temporary Restraining Order by the Supreme Court which upheld the constitutionality of Republic Act 9337.

Under RA 9337, the President can raise the current 10 percent VAT rate to 12 percent beginning next year to generate an additional P80 billion revenues which will be used to reduce the fiscal deficit.

'I myself is not amenable to the increase in prices but we have to bite the bullet to solve the fiscal deficit,' said Treñas.