What is in store for us

From Ducky Paredes:

Sen. Mar Roxas raises an alarm over the government's plan to exact new taxes that would bring in P84 million and implement a second round of increase in the rates charged by the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

Senator Roxas calculates that this will mean that we, the consumers, will be paying P153 billion more to the government. Mar, who used to be trade and industry secretary, wonders whether taking that money from our pockets could perhaps depress the economy.

President Arroyo's plan to exact P83.4 billion in new taxes from the eight new measures she wants imposed will either directly or indirectly hurt consumer's pockets and the local industries.

Senator Roxas says: "Offhand, there is valid concern that the P153 billion that will be extracted from the pockets of consumers could erode disposable income and significantly inhibit spending. This, in turn, could harm local industries.

"Considering we now have the second costliest electricity in Asia, there are concerns about how higher power rates will create an impact on industries, including exporters, that cannot take full advantage of time-in-use discounts because they operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"We want government economic planners to spell out exactly how the imposts will improve the lives of our people. As of now, all they tell us is that the imposts will ease government's financial difficulties. They should tell us how these sacrifices will redound to the benefit of taxpayers."

The senator is wrong. Nothing will redound to the benefit of the people. The government needs more money and they are taking it from the people. What this will get us is more of the same bad government that we have had for the last three years, going on four, and the prospect of having even more taxes next year and even higher electricity rates.

That is what is in store for us.

Depressing.