New BIR chief targets plugging tax leakage By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto and Andrea E. San Juan
NEW BIR chief Charlito Mendoza takes his oath before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday, November 13. PCO PHOTO
ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDS
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HE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) will prioritize maximizing revenues by strengthening tax enforcement to plug leakages, while pursuing reforms to modernize and professionalize tax administration
under its new leadership. Newly appointed Internal Revenue Commissioner Charlito Martin R. Mendoza told BusinessMirror that his top priority up to year-end is maximizing revenues to close the gap between actual collections and the target. “I am fully committed to ensuring that the BIR continues to modernize and deliver
efficient, transparent, and service-oriented tax administration,” Mendoza said. This year, the BIR aims to collect P3.219 trillion, higher by 13.02 percent than last year’s target of P2.848 trillion. The BIR will contribute 71 percent of the government’s P4.520trillion full-year revenue target. About P2.322 trillion, or 72.13 per-
cent, of the BIR’s full-year target has been raised as of the end of September. With the Christmas season expected to drive up consumer spending, Mendoza said the BIR is closely monitoring sales receipts and tax collections from major consumer goods, as well as from vice and petroleum products. See “BIR chief,” A2
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HUGE CUT IN KEY RATES MAY WEAKEN PESO–BPI www.businessmirror.com.ph
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Friday, November 14, 2025 Vol. 21 No. 37
P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 24 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK
JPE DIES, 101: An unparalleled, amazing stretch of public service
By Reine Juvierre S. Alberto @reine_alberto
HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) frontloading a “jumbo reduction” in key policy rates might be “drastic” and could further weaken the Philippine peso, according to the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI). Speaking to reporters on Wednesday night, BPI President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jose Teodoro K. Limcaoco said he
personally thinks that the BSP will not lower the borrowing costs by 50 basis points. See “Rates,” A13
OPEN UP MASS MEDIA TO ALIEN OWNERSHIP–THINK TANK TO GOVT
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HE Philippine government should consider opening up mass media to foreign ownership to help traditional media overcome financial challenges, according to a senior researcher of local think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). “Another way to overcome the financial challenges is we
open up the mass media to foreign ownership,” Ramonette Serafica, senior research fellow at PIDS, said during the joint webinar: “Conversations on Media, Communication, and Development” on Thursday. Citing another paper, Serafica cited a study which outlines different ownership limitations See “Mass media,” A12
By Nonnie Pelayo, Butch Fernandez & Samuel P. Medenilla
FLIGHT INTO THE LIGHT Silhouetted against the warm orange glow of the Philippine sunset, 346 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who fell
victim to human trafficking in Myanmar arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) aboard a chartered Philippine Airlines flight. Their long journey home marks both an ending and a new beginning, as government agencies led by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), together with the DFA, OWWA, DOH, and Bureau of Immigration welcomed them back to safety. For the past two years, more than a thousand Filipinos have been rescued from illegal scam hubs across Southeast Asia, many lured by the promise of high-paying jobs. DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac urged aspiring OFWs to remain vigilant, saying that every rescue is a reminder of the dangers posed by fraudulent recruiters. NONIE REYES
‘Q4 spending aligned with growth goal’ By Samuel P. Medenilla
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HONORING PARTNERS | BuCor at 120 Years BusinessMirror Reporter Joel San Juan receives the Recognition of Stakeholders award on behalf of BusinessMirror President and CEO Benjamin V. Ramos during the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) 120th Founding Anniversary held at the BuCor headquarters in Muntinlupa City. Presenting the award are (from left) CSupt. Maria Fe Marquez, Head Executive Assistant, Office of the Director General; CSupt. Ma. Cecilia Villanueva, Director, Health and Welfare Service; and CSupt. Celso Bravo, OIC–Deputy Director General for Reformation. ROY DOMINGO
@sam_medenilla
RESIDENT Marcos on Thursday assured that government spending during the last quarter of the year will be aligned with his administration’s “original plan” to keep the country on track with its economic growth target this year. “Public spending now will be increased and—to make sure that by the end of the year, the levels of public spending are according to our original plan,” Marcos said in a news conference in Malacañang on Thursday. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) earlier said it is banking on the spending of the P1.31-trillion programmed funds to boost the country’s gross domes-
tic product during the last quarter of 2025. Of the said fund, P9.52 billion will be used for conditional cash transfers. The President issued the statement when asked how the government can restore investor confidence, which were apparently affected by the ongoing government probe on the anomalous flood control projects. Amid the said investigations the value of peso reached an all-time low of P59.17 against the US dollar, while the gross domestic product (GDP) from July to September slowed down to 4 percent. The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) the ongoing investigation on anomalous flood control projects, which started last August, has re-
sulted in a slowdown in the progress in public works, which underwent vetting from Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). In a Viber message, DPWH Secretary Vivencio “Vince” B. Dizon told BusinessMirror many of the said projects will resume before the end of the year. “We will ramp up [the construction], but with safeguards,” he said. Marcos, however, attributed the downturn in economic activity not just to the public works investigations. He noted that the series of typhoons, which hit the country during the third quarter of the year has dampened local economic growth. This was worsened, he said by the “prevailing global situation,” caused See “Growth,” A2
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UAN PONCE ENRILE, the country’s longest-serving government official and known most for his role as martial law administrator and later a key player in the 1986 Edsa People Power uprising, has died, his family said Thursday. Katrina Ponce Enrile confirmed the passing of her father, at 4:21 p.m., surrounded by family at home, as he had wished. Senate President Vicente Sotto III, presiding at the session’s lengthy plenary deliberations on the 2026 budget, also announced the death of Enrile, whose Senate stint was capped by his historic role as presiding officer of the fourmonth impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona in 2012. “He has dedicated his whole life, until his last days, to public service. We will remember him for his formidable intellect and compassion for the people, especially the Senate employees. The legacy of Manong Johnny will always live on, etched in this institution that he loved,” said Sotto. The Senate, following tradition, suspended sessions until 1pm Monday, November 17. Enrile was the 21st Senate President from 2008 to 2013.
Marcos pays tribute
BRILLIANT and a public servant to the very end. See “JPE,” A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 59.0270 n JAPAN 0.3814 n UK 77.5379 n HK 7.5954 n CHINA 8.2991 n SINGAPORE 45.3635 n AUSTRALIA 38.5919 n EU 68.4418 n KOREA 0.0402 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.7393 Source: BSP (November 13, 2025)