Transport agencies Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) have remitted billions of pesos to the national coffers in 2017, making them members of the “billionaires’ club,” an elite class of government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) that have declared P1 billion or more in dividends.
CAAP, which remitted a total of P5.39 billion last year, was able to collect nearly P6 billion from Philippine Airlines in October last year, after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Department of Transportation not to extend the deadline given to the flag carrier to pay its long-overdue navigational fees and other charges.
CAAP had not remitted dividends for the past four years, but has now emerged as the second biggest dividend contributor.
PPA’s 2017 contribution of P1.95 billion, meanwhile, puts it fifth in ranking out of 53 GOCCs to remit to the government last year.
Total dividends from GOCCs in 2017 amounted to P30.45 billion, representing a 9.8% increase from 2016’s collections of P27.73 billion, according to the Department of Finance (DOF). GOCCs are required to declare and remit at least 50% of their income as dividends to the national government.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the 2017 dividend collections actually exceeded the P27.73 billion remittances in 2016 even if Land Bank of the Philippines was exempt from paying its P6 billion dividends in 2017 to allow it to recapitalize and better serve the increasing development needs of the country. Had these dividends not been exempted, the total dividend would have reached P36.45 billion.
Among the other biggest dividend contributors to make it to 2017’s billionaires’ club are the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. with P7.46 billion; Development Bank of the Philippines, P2.51 billion; Manila International Airport Authority, P2.22 billion; Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, P1.84 billion; National Power Corp., P1.39 billion; Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., P1.18 billion; and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, P923.60 million.
Among the other GOCCs that remitted to the National Treasury in 2017 are the Philippine Economic Zone Authority with P622.91 million; PNOC Exploration Corporation, P519.42 million; Clark Development Corporation, P500 million; National Development Company, P428.19 million; Philippine Reclamation Authority, P323.76 million; Local Water Utilities Administration, P319.08 million; Cebu Port Authority, P294.69 million; Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, P240.59 million; Metropolitan Waterworks & Sewerage System, P232.63 million; and Philippine Leisure and Retirement Authority, P210.44 million.
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