SC upholds decision clearing Mikey Arroyo from tax case

THE SUPREME COURT (SC) upheld the Court of Tax Appeals’ (CTA) March 21 decision clearing former party-list congressman Juan Miguel “Mikey” M. Arroyo from his P27.3-million tax-evasion case.

The SC’s First Division said in a Sept. 12 resolution it dismissed the government’s petition for certiorari on Mr. Arroyo’s case because of “its procedural defects and substantive deficiencies.”

The high court said the CTA “did not act capriciously” and “assiduously sifted the evidence and analysed the records” on Mr. Arroyo’s case.

“Also, the CTA in Division, noting that the [Bureau of Internal Revenue] did not discover the sources of Arroyo’s vaunted income, fully disclosed the various reasons why the State’s theory of the charges could not prosper, and how the chosen audit procedure known as the net worth method did not suffice to prove his criminal liability under the informations,” the resolution read.

The Court also said the petition was prematurely filed because the government did not first file a motion for reconsideration, which is “a gross violation” of the Rules of Court.

“(P)rocedural rules should be treated with utmost respect and due regard mainly because they have been crafted and designed to ensure the prompt adjudication of cases to remedy the worsening problem of delay in the resolution of rival claims and in the administration of justice,” the SC said.