Prohibition of Field Investigation During the Christmas Season

December 8, 1975 REVENUE MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 40-75 SUBJECT : Prohibition of Field Investigation During the Christmas Season TO : All Internal Revenue Officers and Others Concerned In accordance with the standing policy of this Office to suspend all investigations during the Christmas season and to clear the backlog of pending cases, all fieldmen such as Revenue Examiners, Revenue Inspectors, Tobacco Inspectors and other fieldmen are hereby enjoined not to perform field or office investigation work during the period from December 15, 1975 to January 2, 1976. During the said period, they should stay in their respective offices and perform the following: 1. Collection and processing of delinquent accounts under Letter of Instructions No. 308. 2. Fieldman, particularly Examiners should prepare the field and audit reports of all cases and investigations which had been terminated and submit the reports accordingly for processing. Priority should be given to all 1970 cases, refund cases and other delinquent account cases. 3. Fieldmen should also prepare and update the monthly reports required from them. The monthly reports required for the month of December, 1975 and other reports from the months prior to December, 1975 should be submitted not later than January 5, 1976 and no fieldman should be allowed to resume field and office audit investigation unless the required reports are submitted as of said date. The monthly reports to be submitted shall include not only those reports required for assessment work but also the collection reports, Civil Service Form No. 48, Traveling Expense Vouchers and such other monthly reports as required from fieldmen. 4. Division Chiefs, Branch Chiefs, and Revenue District Officers concerned with the processing of field and office audit reports are required to expedite the processing thereof so that the assessment notices and letters of demand can be immediately processed and released. 5. All monthly reports of activities required from the various units, districts, branches, division and services should likewise be reported and submitted not later than January 5, 1976. 6. Chiefs of Units such as services, regions, divisions, branches, and district offices are hereby instructed to require from the employees in their respective units, whether they are fieldman, clerks or any other class of employee, the submission of the list of pending dockets in their possession as of December 31, 1975 . 7. The prohibition on the conducting of field and office investigations is absolute with the exception of Revenue Inspectors and other fieldmen assigned in cigarette factories, distilleries, compounders, gasoline terminals, depots and bulk stations, and other establishments wherein inspectors are assigned during the hours that the factories and establishments are operating. 8. All employees are hereby reminded of the prohibitions of Presidential Decree No. 46 a portion of which is quoted hereunder: NOW, THEREFORE, I FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the power vested in me by the Constitution as Commander-in-Chief of all the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and pursuant to Proclamation No. 1081 dated September 21, 1972, and General Order No. 1 dated September 22, 1972, do hereby make it punishable for any public official or employee, whether of the national or local governments, to receive, directly or indirectly, and for private persons to give, or offer to give, any gifts, present or other valuable thing on any occasion, including Christmas, when such gift, present or other valuable thing is given by reason of his official position, regardless of whether or not the same is for past favor or favors or the giver hopes or expects to receive a favor or better treatment in the future from the public official or employee concerned in the discharge of his official functions. Included within the prohibition is the throwing of parties or entertainments in honor of the official or employee or of his immediate relatives. For violation of this Decree, the penalty of imprisonment for not less than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years and perpetual disqualification from public office shall be imposed. The official or employee concerned shall likewise be subject to administrative disciplinary action and, if found guilty, shall be meted out the penalty of suspension or removal, depending on the seriousness of the offense. Revenue Service Heads, Regional Directors, Division Chiefs, Revenue District Officers and other supervisors are hereby held responsible for the strict compliance of the provisions of this Revenue Memorandum Circular and any violation thereof will be administratively dealt with. EFREN I. PLANA Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue TAN-1456-040-3 ANNEX MESSAGE FOR TRANSMISSION TO ALL REGIONAL DIRECTORS: Pursuant to Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 40-75 dated December 8, 1975: 1) SUSPEND ALL INVESTIGATIONS DURING CHRISTMAS SEASON FROM DECEMBER 15, 1975 TO JANUARY 2, 1976 AND 2) ALL FIELDMEN SHOULD STAY IN THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICES AND PERFORM THE FOLLOWING: a) Collection and processing of delinquent accounts under Letter of Instructions No. 308. b) Fieldmen, particularly examiners, should prepare the field and audit reports of all cases and investigations which had been terminated and submit reports accordingly for processing. Priority should be given to all 1970 cases, refund cases and other delinquent account cases. c) Fieldmen should also prepare and update monthly reports required of them. d) Units concerned with processing of field and office audit reports are required to expedite processing thereof that assessment notices and letters of demand can be immediately processed and released. e) All monthly reports of activities required should be reported and submitted not later than January 5, 1976. f) Submission of list of pending dockets in the possession of all employees thereat as of December 31, 1975. g) Prohibition on the conducting of field and office investigation is absolute, except Revenue Inspectors and other fieldmen assigned in cigarette factories, distilleries, compounders, gasoline terminals, depots and bulk stations and other establishments wherein inspectors are assigned during the hours that the establishments are operating. h) All employees are reminded of the prohibitions of Presidential Decree No. 46. i) Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 40-75 dated December 8, 1975 follows. BY ORDER OF THE COMMISSIONER LAURO D. ABRAHAN Assistant Commissioner TAN-1005-712-3