THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) found discrepancies in the tax declarations of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno but did not disclose details because of a prohibition in the Tax Code, an official said on Monday. Chair, the BIR is of the belief that we cannot give the information on any finding [at this point]. There are exemptions namely: if there is waiver on the part of the individual concerned, by order of the judicial court or the Senate impeachment court during an impeachment trial. In her verified answer in her impeachment complaint, Chief Justice Sereno said she earned P30 million as government counsel for Piatco and that she has declared it in her SALN. Guballa, however, clarified that the BIR would not stand in the way of prosecuting the Chief Justice.

Source: Manila Times February 19, 2018 06:22 UTC