POE: LOWER TAX RATES TO BOOST JOBS CREATION

CEBU CITY--Aside from lowering the tax rates on personal income, leading presidential candidate Sen. Grace Poe is looking at cutting the corporate income tax rate as a strategy for stimulating economic growth and creating jobs.

During the second leg of the 2016 presidential debate held in Cebu City, Poe said a lower corporate tax rate could result in increased investment in the Philippines and thus more jobs for Filipinos.

At 30 percent, Poe said the country's corporate tax rate is uncompetitive as opposed to other member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"Kasabay ng pagbaba ng income tax, kailangan din nating babaan ang corporate income tax. Bakit? Sapagkat dito sa Pilipinas nasa 30 percent ang corporate income tax," Poe pointed out.

"Sa ibang bansa sa ASEAN, ang average ay 25 percent. Bakit sila mamumuhunan dito kung sa ibang bansa mas mura?" she asked.

Poe had earlier said that reducing personal income taxes, review of tax rates and increasing efficiency in collection will be among the priorities of her administration, if she wins in the May 9 elections.

With the current income tax brackets and tax rates, the Philippines effectively imposes the highest personal income tax in the ASEAN region. A Filipino taxpayer earning P500,000 annually is taxed at 32 percent.

Poe, who is running under the banner "Gobyernong may Puso," said the government should show its compassion to millions of wage and salaried workers who lose up to a third of their hard-earned income to unreasonably high taxes.

In the presidential debate, Poe said a lower income tax should be coupled with lower corporate tax to make the country attractive to foreign capital and create more jobs for Filipinos.

"Dapat may permanenteng trabaho ang ating mga kababayan at wasto ang kita. At kahit na babaan natin ang kanilang mga buwis na importanteng gawin natin, kailangan din nating lumikha ng trabaho," Poe explained.