By Donnabelle
L. Gatdula (The Philippine Star) | Updated May 23, 2013 - 12:00am
MANILA,
Philippines - The country’s largest group of real estate developers and
builders has called on the Department of Finance (DOF) to reconsider its
proposal of removing mass housing from the latest Investment Priorities Plan
(IPP).
“We are
calling on the DOF to reconsider its position of having mass housing removed
from the list of investment priorities as this goes against the provisions of
the Omnibus Investment Code of 1987 and the national housing program,” Charlie
A. V. Gorayeb, national president of the Chamber of Real Estate and Builders
Association Inc. (CREBA) said in an interview.
In a paper
submitted to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the DOF said it is
pushing for the removal of mass housing and other investment sectors such as
shipbuilding, iron, steel, and motor vehicle manufacturing from the 2013 IPP
saying their continued inclusion on the list poses an “administrative
nightmare” to the tax bureau.
Inclusion in
the IPP qualifies an investor for tax incentives, tax holidays, tax credits and
other non-fiscal incentives.
“The tax
perks and incentives provided by the IPP, allows developers to keep the prices
of our mass housing projects within the reach of the average Filipino,” Gorayeb
said. “If mass housing is removed from the 2013 IPP – that would be the
nightmare. This is a threat to national growth and development and it will deny
millions of Filipinos of their dreams of owning a home.”
Gorayeb said
mass housing projects have been listed every year in the IPP for over a decade
now for the purpose of bridging the housing gap and provide affordable homes
for Filipinos.
“Delisting
will also have a negative effect on the 75 or so peripheral industries involved
in the mass housing industry, like steel and cement manufacturers and other
local suppliers,” Gorayeb said.
The CREBA
executive added that if the DOF intends to generate more tax revenues it should
propose measures to run after bigtime smuggling syndicates where billions in
government revenues are lost instead of removing tax incentives given to the
mass housing sector.
In a letter
sent to the BOI on April 27, CREBA also aired its opposition to the DOF paper
stressing that mass housing projects also generate thousands of jobs which
contribute to the local economies and reduce the problem of unemployment.
“The DOF must
take these factors into serious consideration,” Gorayeb stressed.
Mass housing
is included in the 1987 Omnibus Investment Code as a priority investment
sector. In 2007, the Board of Investment (BoI) expanded its coverage to include
vertical housing or condominium projects.
In February,
the BOI called a public hearing for the drafting of the 2013 IPP guidelines and
said it will retain mass housing in its list of priority sectors. The board
said it will submit the draft IPP for President Aquino’s approval by month’s
end after consulting with representatives of the various investment sectors.
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