Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Quezon City, Metro Manila ae oF

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by ATTY. MAGTANGGOL T. GUNIGUNDO I

EXPLANATORY NOTE

“This bill seeks to make boxing icon Manny Pacquiao exempted from individual
income tax fos life.

Manny Pacquiao is publicly considered as the People’s Champ in boxing
history. His populacity is overwhelming and every Filipino loves him so dearly
because he has placed the Philippines in the boxing map of the world. In every aspect
of the sport, he is electrifying, exciting and a phenomenon that no Filipino boxer has
ever achieved before. He is the inspiration of millions of Filipinos.

Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao was bom on December 17, 1978, to parents
Dionesia Dapidran-Pacquiao and Rosalio Pacquiao. When he was a teenager,
Pacquiao left his family and boarded a ship to Manila, in hopes of training as a boxer
and launching a career in the sport. Not long after, in January of 1995, his goals
gained some traction; at age 16, he stepped into the ring for his first professional bout,
against Edmund Ignacio. Pacquiao won the fight in four rounds, in a unanimous
decision. The victory propelled him into a successful boxing run that would
encompass the better part of two decades. He is a gifted athlete who possesses
knockout power in his punch, lightning fast speed, outstanding footwork and
dexterity and a solid chin, A superhuman defined by a multitude of passions, his
numbers continued to rack up when he dismantled top opponents like Oscar dela
Hoya, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, Antonio Barrera, Miguel Cotto, Ricky
Hatton, Lehlohonolo Ledwaba, Oscar Larios, Brandon Rios and other big names in
the boxing world.


He has achieved greatness with his 55 Wins (38 knockouts, 17 decisions), 5
Losses (3 knockouts, 2 decisions), 2 Draws professional record. For a long time,
Manny Pacquiao was the consensus pound-for-pound king. He is the first and only
cight-division world champion, in which he has won ten world titles, as well as the
first to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. Along with the
many title defenses he has amassed, the People’s Champ also collected his share of
outside the ring honors, to wit: 2000-2009 Boxing Writers Association of
America Fighter of the Decade; 2000-2009 HBO Fighter of the Decade; 2001—
2010 World Boxing Council Boxer of the Decade; 2001-2010 World Boxing
Organization Best Pound-for-Pound Fighter of the Decade; 2006, 2008 and
2009 Boxing Writers Association of America's Fighter of the Year; 2006, 2008
and 2009 ESPN Fighter of the Year; 2006, 2008 and 2009 The Ring Fighter of the
Year; 2008 Sports Illustrated Boxer of the Year; 2008 Yahoo! Sports Fighter of the
Year; 2008 and 2009 ESPN Star's Champion of Champions; 2008 and 2009 World
Boxing Council Boxer of the Year; 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 The Ring No.1
Pound-for-Pound; 2009 Ask Men Most Influential ~Men (ranked — 24th);
2009 ESPN Knockout of the Year (i Round 2 against Ricky Hatton); 2009 and
2011 ESPY Awards Best Fighter; 2009 Forbes Magazine World's Highest-Paid
Athletes (ranked 6"); 2009 Sports Illustrated Fighter of the Year; 2009 TIME 100
Most Influential People (Heroes and Icons Category); 2009, 2010 and 2012 Forbes
Magazine Celebrity 100 (Che World's Most Powerful Celebrity) (ranked 57th, 55th
and 33"); 2010 Bleacher Report Most Exciting Athletes of All ‘Time (ranked 85");
2010 World Boxing Organization Fighter of the Yeas; 2010 Yahoo!
Sports Boxing's Most Influential (ranked 25th); 2000-09 Philippine Sportswriters
Association Athlete of the Decade; 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008 PSA
Sportsman of the Year; 2003 Presidential Medal of Merit; 2003 and 2010
Congressional Medal of Achievement / Distinction / Honor; 2006 Order of
Lakandula with the rank of "Champion for Life" (Kampeon Habambubay);
2008 Philippine Legion of Honor with the rank of "Officer" (Pinuna); 2008 University
Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Honorary Award for Sports
Excellence; 2009 Order of Sikatuna with the rank of Date (Grand Cross with Gold
Distinction); 2011 Gabriel "Flash" Elorde Memorial "Quintessential Athlete" Award,
to name a few.

His generosity and desire to help that extends even up to the use of his hard-
earned money is noteworthy. He is an exemplar of humility, a refreshing soul in the
Philippines. Every Pacquiao fight brings the nation to a halt, with crowds swarming
multi-purpose courts that provides live coverage of the event while the rest are glued
to television or radio stations. PNP reports that no crime incident occurs during this
period. Watch any post-match interview with Pacman and the first words that come
out of his mouth are always in praise of his opponent, and even during matches, we
can not think of a single time Pacquiao went out of his way to embarrass or belittle
anyone. As a matter of fact, the only emotion we have ever really seen from him are
the tears that seem to come at the end of every fight.


Some of those tears are from the thrill of victory and others are the agony of defeat.
He never seemed to revel in fame, He is remarkably the most deserving of attention
that the brazen celebrity exploits that so often steal our focus in every fight he
engages in. ‘Technique can be taught, skill can be sefined but there are couple of

things Pacquiao possesses: Humility, Charisma and Power. These are part of his stock
in trade and the sky appeared the limit. ‘These are the prime reasons why he is the
icon of every Filipino soul. ‘This is the reason why he is well-loved by the people.
“These are things that distinguish him as the great champion—from others. In the face
of defeat, he exemplifies the Filipino spitit’s ability to function in the face of setbacks
and you can see the discipline, perseverance, and commitment that went into the
hero’s success. Pacquiao's impeccable footwork, speed and quick jabs has kept
boxing fans on theit feet. And his endearing smile, charm and chiseled physique has

only helped to boost his public appeal..

‘This might be the first time in the Philippines that this rare privilege is
conferred on an individual taxpayer, but let us take a glimpse at Colombia that
bestowed a similar privilege to one of its outstanding national, Luz Marina Zuluaga,
who won the Miss Universe crown in 1958. The Colombian government even built
her a mansion, printed postal stamps in her honor, declared a national holiday in het
name and prockaimed her as “TAX EXEMPT FOR LIFE”. Ms. Zuluaga of Colombia
won only once in the said pageant and yet she received honors and privileges from
her country. Manny Pacquiao has brought more countless honor and pride to the
Filipino people.

‘This measure granting a lifetime individual income tax exemption to a Filipino
who has gained outstanding international recognition in his field of endeavor will not
only be a fitting expression of the nation’s gratitude to countrymen like Manny
Pacquiao for his achievements and in appreciation of the honor and inspiration he has
been bringing to the Filipino people.

Immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

ATTY. MAGTAN! L UNDO I


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

3521

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by ATTY. MAGTANGGOL T. GUNIGUNDO I

AN ACT
CONFERRING LIFE-TIME INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX EXEMPTION
TO BOXING ICON EMMANUEL DAPIDRAN PACQUIAO ALSO
KNOWN AS “MANNY PACQUIAO”

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives in Congress
assembled:

Section 1. Short Title - This act shall be known as the “ The Pacquiao Act
of 2013.”

Section 2. Income Tax-meaning — Income ‘Tax is a tax on a person's
income, emoluments, profits arising from property, practice of profession,
conduct of trade or'business or on the pertinent items of gross income
specified in the Tax Code of 1997 (Tax Code), as amended, less the
deductions and/or personal and additional exemptions, if any, authorized
for such types of income, by the Tax Code, as amended, or other special
laws.

Section 3. Life-time Income Tax Exemption/ Privilege ~ The State shall
confer life-time individual income tax exemption to boxing icon Emmanuel
Dapidran Pacquiao also known as “Manny Pacquiao” who has given
outstanding honor and pride to the Filipino people.


Section 4. Status of Payments of Income Tax Already Made to the Bureau of
Internal Revenue. — All payments for the income tax accrued for the past years
that have already been paid and remitted to the government shall form part of
the State coffers and shall no longer be reimbursed to Manny Pacquiao.

All other incurred income tax liabilities for the previous years shall now
be obliterated by the operation of this Act.

Section 5. Repealing Clause, —'The provisions of Title Il of Republic
‘Act No. 8424 (The Tax Reform Act of 1997), regulations, or other issuance or
any part thereof inconsistent with the provision of the Act are hereby repealed
or modified accordingly. All other laws, rules and regulations that may be
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or amended
accordingly.

Section 6. Separability Clause. — If any of the sections or provisions of
this Act is adjudged invalid, all its other provisions not affected thereby shall
remain in force.

Section 7. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15)
days after its complete publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2)
newspapers of general circulation, whichever comes earlier.

Approved,