public importance.

It involves not only the

constitutionality of a tax law but, more
importantly, the use of taxes for public purpose.
Former President Marcos issued LOI No. 1465
with the intention of rehabilitating an ailing
private company. This is clear from the text of the
LOI. PPI is expressly named in the LOI as the
direct beneficiary of the levy. Worse, the levy was
made dependent and conditional upon PPI
becoming financially viable. The LOI provided
that "the capital contribution shall be collected
until adequate capital is raised to make PPI
viable."
The constitutionality of the levy is already in
doubt on a plain reading of the statute. It is Our
constitutional duty to squarely resolve the issue as
the final arbiter of all justiciable controversies. The
doctrine of standing, being a mere procedural
technicality, should be waived, if at all, to
adequately thresh out an important
constitutional issue.
(3) Ripeness for judicial determination
"Ripeness for judicial determination" means that
litigation is inevitable or there is no adequate
relief available in any other form or proceeding.
CJH Development Corp. v. BIR (GR No. 172457, Dec. 24,
2008) However, CJH is not left without
recourse. The Tariff and Customs Code (TCC)
provides for the administrative and judicial
remedies available to a taxpayer who is minded to
contest an assessment, subject of course to
certain reglementary periods. The TCC provides
that a protest can be raised provided that
payment first be made of the amount due.The
decision of the Collector can be reviewed by the
Commissioner of Customs who can approve,
modify or reverse the decision or action of the
Collector. If the party is not satisfied with the
ruling of the Commissioner, he may file the
necessary appeal to the Court of Tax Appeals.
Afterwards, the decision of the Court of Tax
Appeals can be appealed to this Court.

TAXATION 2

BAR OPERATIONS COMMISSION