At least 17 officials of the Department of Finance (DoF) and several private individuals are facing criminal charges before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the series of “tax credit scam” that took place from 1993 to 1998, the Office of the Ombudsman said yesterday.
No less than Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales who gave the green light to pursue the filing of information for violation of the provisions of Republic Act 3019, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and Estafa through Falsification of Public Documents under the Revised Penal Code against them.
To be formally charged are former Undersecretary Antonio Belicena, former Deputy Executive Director Uldarico Andutan Jr., reviewers Asuncion Magdaet, Jane Aranas and Rowena Malonzo and evaluators Sylvialina Daguimol, Mark Binsol, Annabelle Diño, Merose Tordesillas, Charmelle Recoter, Marife Cabadin, Gemma Abarra, Emelita Tizon, Gregoria Evangelio, Purita Napeñas, Cherry Gomez and Ma. Cristina Moncada, all of the DoF.
Also charged were officials of private corporation Filipino Way and its purported supplier-companies: Filsyn Corp., Hi-Lon Manufacturing Co. Inc., Manila Bay Spinning Mills Inc., Wise and Co. Inc., Bush Boake Allen Philippines Inc., Dragon Textiles Mills Inc., Steel Asia Manufacturing Corp. and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.
In an 88-page resolution, the anti-graft office found that the respondents  who were part of DoF’s One Stop Shop-Inter Agency Tax Credit and Duty Drawback Center  (Center) “conspired with one another and with the officials of the private companies in giving unwarranted benefits through manifest partiality and evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence to Filipino Way and to the private persons by granting  a total of 83 tax credit certificates amounting to P202,443,563 in favor of Filipino Way.”
Records show of the amount, about P101,881, 374 was utilized by Filipino Way to pay its own tax liabilities, while about P90,046,858 tax credits were transferred to the other companies.
It was found Filipino Way has “no physical or legal existence,” and that its purported proprietor Richard Noriegas is a fictitious person. This makes it improbable for the transferees to be Filipino Way’s suppliers of capital equipment, raw materials or components, the Ombudsman said.
The Ombudsman added it also submitted spurious or simulated export declarations, bills of lading, bank credit memos, export sales invoices, supply agreements and deeds of assignment to make it appear that it is entitled to tax credits.
The Center was created under Administrative Order No. 226 dated Feb. 7, 1992 primarily to process tax credit and duty drawback applications as incentives to BoI-registered enterprises. The incentives consist of government refund payments on duties and taxes.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the Special Presidential Task Force 156 that was created in 1999 “to review, investigate, and gather evidence necessary to successfully prosecute irregularities committed at the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bureau of Customs and other government agencies under or attached to the Department of Finance.”
In the first set of “tax credit scam” cases resolved in March 2012, the Ombudsman dismissed from the service 13 DoF officials, including Belicena and Andutan, for defrauding the government of  P82 million and P74.84 million arising from the “tax credit scam” that occurred from 1994 to 1998.     
The officials were found guilty of grave misconduct and were meted the penalty of dismissal from the service, with accessory penalties of cancellation of eligibility, forfeiture of retirement benefits and perpetual disqualification from re-employment in the government service.
Since Belicena had already retired from the government service, he was meted the accessory penalties, the Ombudsman said.