Dividends remitted by government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) as of July this year have reached a record high of P61.3 billion, the Department of Finance (DOF) has said.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said this unprecedented amount of dividend contributions come from 53 GOCCs, including the Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), which were allowed to retain their cash contributions to enable them to shore up their capital to meet the country’s development needs.
“The dividends collected by the national government help offset the subsidies given out to state enterprises performing crucial social functions. They will go a long way in helping us hold down deficits and continue funding the infrastructure and social programs of President Duterte,” said Dominguez during the 2019 GOCC Day held at Malacañan Palace on Thursday (July 11).
The event was attended by President Duterte, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and other Cabinet officials.
Dominguez credited the “spectacular trend” in the collection of GOCC dividends to the hard work of the DOF’s Corporate Affairs Group (CAG) headed by Undersecretary Antonette Tionko and “ably assisted” by Assistant Secretary Soledad Emilia Cruz.
“We also have to thank not only the officers and the board of the different GOCCs but also the (Cabinet) secretaries who supervise these GOCCs for their wholehearted cooperation,” Dominguez added, referring to Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, and Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.
The 2019 dividend collections, corresponding to the 2018 net earnings of GOCCs, helped provide funds for the pensions of the country’s uniformed personnel and augment funding for the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF), which was created under the new Rice Tariffication Law, Dominguez said.
In 2018, total dividend collections from 56 GOCCs amounted to P51.2 billion, representing a dramatic 41 percent increase from the P36.5 billion collected in 2017, he said.
This amount includes cash and dividend contributions retained by LandBank and DBP to boost their capital requirements.
For last year, eight GOCCs remitted at least P1 billion each in cash dividends, namely: the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC); Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP); Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP); Philippine Ports Authority (PPA); Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR); Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO); Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA); and the National Power Corporation (Napocor).
These same dividend contributors also topped the list for the January-July 2019 period.
“Because each GOCC has a unique mission, they have different management requirements and financial performances. Regardless of their unique features, we expect our GOCCs to be all competently managed and efficiently run,” Dominguez said.
“I am happy to note that the greater number of GOCCs operate with such efficiencies that they are able to turn in profits and remit dividends to the national government,” he added.
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