Finance Usec. Mendoza takes over BIR

By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has appointed Finance Undersecretary Charlito Martin R. Mendoza as the new commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), replacing Romeo D. Lumagui, Jr., as the agency struggles to meet its 2025 revenue collection target.

In a Viber chat to reporters on Wednesday evening, acting Press Secretary Dave M. Gomez confirmed the change within the agency but did not elaborate further.

Mr. Mendoza took his oath of office before Mr. Marcos at Malacañan Palace on Thursday morning.

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto on Thursday expressed confidence the BIR will exceed its revenue targets under Mr. Mendoza, who was undersecretary of the Department of Finance (DoF).

“I trust that under (Mendoza’s) leadership, the BIR will meet and even exceed our revenue targets. Above all, I trust that he will always keep the well-being of our taxpayers at the heart of all your efforts,” Mr. Recto said in a statement on Thursday.

Mr. Recto called the new BIR chief a “steady hand and reform-driven leader,” citing his prior roles as Finance undersecretary since April 2024.

As undersecretary, Mr. Mendoza headed the Finance department’s Revenue Operations Group, working closely with the BIR and the Bureau of Customs (BoC).

He previously served as district collector of the BoC Port of Cebu from July 2019 to October 2022. Under his leadership, the port achieved record-breaking revenue collections and notable milestones in border protection, according to an April 2024 statement from the DoF.

He also steered the Port of Cebu to become the first Customs collection district in the country to have its main port and all subports ISO 9001:2015 certified.

Prior to joining the government, Mr. Mendoza built a legal career as a founding partner of the Palafox Patriarca Romero and Mendoza Law Firm.

He previously worked as an associate lawyer at the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala and Cruz Law Offices and the Suarez and Narvasa Law Firm.

Mr. Mendoza placed third in the 2004 Philippine Bar Examinations after earning his Bachelor of Laws degree from San Beda University. He also holds a degree in Geodetic Engineering from the University of the Philippines and is a licensed Geodetic Engineer.

The new BIR chief’s appointment comes as Mr. Lumagui earlier this week said the agency may fall short of its P3.219-trillion collection target for 2025.

“The overall performance is low… so there’s a need to recalibrate or recalculate the entire goal,” Mr. Lumagui told BusinessWorld in an interview in mixed English and Filipino on Nov. 11. “As things stand, it’s going to be quite difficult.”

The latest Treasury data showed that BIR collections jumped by 10.88% to P2.32 trillion in the first nine months of the year. However, this was 2.63% lower than the programmed P2.38 trillion for the January-to-September period.

The BIR, the main revenue collection agency, needs to collect around P897 billion to reach the P3.219-trillion full-year program.

Mr. Lumagui was a BIR deputy commissioner when the President’s term started in 2022, but was promoted as BIR chief in November 2022.

Mr. Recto said Mr. Lumagui was a “great partner” and a “fearless leader” that made a stronger and more credible BIR.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said the leadership change highlighted the need for the government to boost tax collections to fund its budget deficit and key programs that promote inclusive growth and poverty reduction.

“This is also part of the fiscal reform measures to further improve overall fiscal and debt management over the long-term and for the coming generations,” Mr. Ricafort said. — with Aubrey Rose A. Inosante