Sen. Manny Pacquiao, presidential candidate of PROMDI Party and PDP-Laban (Pimentel Wing), is willing to cancel sorties and other campaign operations to join a special session of Congress for the enactment of a bill that would propose the reduction or suspension of excise taxes on fuel.

In a press conference at his campaign headquarters in Makati on Monday, Feb. 21, Pacquiao underscored the need for government to immediately address public clamor for an end to the weekly increases in fuel prices.

He vowed to support any call for the holding of special sessions, especially if this will give way to the passage of bills for a moratorium on the imposition of excise tax petroleum products.

The conduct of special sessions may require Pacquiao to skip rallies and other presidential campaign activities.

However, Pacquiao stressed that it would be better if Congress will pass a bill that would reduce excise tax on oil products.

Pacquiao said he is also against any kind of tax increase, especially in this time of crisis when the economy has severely suffered and many Filipinos are unemployed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“Kontra ako sa pagtaas ng taxes. Ang kailangan natin ay palakasin ang non-revenue income tulad ng mga kinikita mula sa public utilities at mga GOCC (I am against increase in taxes. What we need is to strengthen the non-revenue income just what what public utilities and those from the GOCCs),” he said, referring to government owned and controlled corporations.

Due to the skyrocketing prices of gasoline and other petrol products, the House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means passed House Bill 10438 that proposes to suspend the imposition of excise taxes on diesel and kerosene from December 1, 2021 to June 1, 2022 and slash the taxes on gasoline by P3 per liter.

In the Senate, lawmakers were asked to pass a bill that would provide for the automatic suspension of the collection of excise taxes on gasoline and diesel once the average price of Dubai crude oil hits $80 per barrel for three months in a row.

Pacquiao said he is supportive of any measure that would give Filipinos a respite from the unabated increase in fuel prices.

Pacquiao likewise noted what appears to be a conspiracy by the cartel of petroleum companies to take advantage of the situation in the global oil market and recent movements in the US Federal Reserves.

“Naniniwala akong may sabwatan (sa cartel) kaya dapat na silipin ang kanilang libro para malaman natin ang katotohanan dito (I suspect there is a cartel so we need to look into the books (of oil firms) to ferret out the truth),” he said.