Superstar singer Regine Velasquez  reveals in a Facebook posting that almost half (44 percent) of her income goes to taxes. She feels bad about it simply because of her perception that she does benefit from her tax payments. 

She stressed in her social media posting: “Ang aking income tax ay nasa 32 percent plus meron po akong VAT na 12 percent. 32+12=44 po ng pinaghirapan ko napupunta sa gobyerno pero wala akong nakukuha kahit anong benipisyo (My income tax is about 32 percent and then I have VAT of 12 percent, total is 44 percent percent That is what I pay and that is what goes to the government — sadly, I don’t get any benefits from the government).”

She actually prefaced that revelation, thus: “Nung bata ako ang akala ko mahirap ang Pilipinas hindi rin nakatulong na pinanganak akong mahirap. Pero ngayon na pagtantutantu ko hindi tayo mahirap!! Pinahihirapan tayo. (Whan I was a child I though the Philippines was a poor country. It did not help that I come from a poor family. But now I realize that we are not a poor country — our government is making us poor).”

“Ako po ay isang singer lamang na nagsumikap para maiahon ang aking pamilya sa hirap. Sa tulong ng ating Panginoon natulungan ko ang aking pamilya. Hanggang ngayon ako ay nag tatrabaho ng marangal nag babayad ng wastong buwis (I am a singer who is doing all I can for my family with the help of God. Until now I am working hard and paying the right taxes).”

It is possible that all singers in the country whose engagements are well-publicized and well-promoted are also taxed the same way as she is. Her husband, the equally known and idolized Ogie Alcasid, is most likely taxed the same way.  

The country’s entertainment industry has long been unhappy with the bunch of taxes the government collects from their ranks. And almost every known performer is shocked and disgusted with the findings that billions of tax money go into the pockets of certain government officials, politicians, and the private contractors they sign up for projects the government agencies could not implement with only their own personnel. 

Despite their rant about onerous taxes, many Pinoy entertainment idols live well in mansion-like houses in gated subdivisions. Some of their houses are higher than two stories and have to be equipped with elevators. 

The latest development about punishing corrupt government officials and their conspirators is that the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI)  Monday (12 October) will file more than a dozen cases within four weeks against people linked to 421 suspected ghost or substandard flood control projects uncovered in the government’s initial probe into public works spending.

ICI special adviser and former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Rodolfo Azurin Jr. said the commission, created to investigate large-scale irregularities in infrastructure programs, is operating on a strict four-week plan that includes validation, case buildup, and filing before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Corruption and taxes do not prevent some of our stars from wanting to do more for  their fans. 

For instance, award-winning actress Meryll Soriano may finally fulfill early next year her dream of becoming a film director. She is ready to shoot a short film on  postpartum psychosis. She hopes the short film will be followed in a few weeks by her helming a full-length movie. 

Soriano talked about her short film project at the sidelines of the media conference of CreaZion Studios Artists on 9 October for another project. The media huddle was held at Midnight Dream Studios, K-Park, Glorietta 1, Makati City.

She told the journos and the vloggers: “The concept for short film is something that has been with me for 20 years, and has come full circle. It’s about mental health, because advocacy ko iyan.”

She herself will be the lead actor in the film. She had gone through postpartum depression herself. She has three sons. The eldest has former actor Bernard Palanca as father. Soriano and Palanca were married for a year within 2006 and 2007. 

Soriano’s second and third sons have actor Joem Bascon as their father. The two sons have about a gap of ten years. Bascon became Soriano’s live-in boyfriend about a year or two after she separated from Palanca. They were together only for about a year, too. After about 10 years, though, they got back together and they had another son. They are still happy together (and may they always be!).

Soriano is, of course, a niece of “Diamond Star” Maricel Soriano and a daughter of Willie Revillame. Merryl’s mom is Becbec, a dancer sister of Maricel. Meryll was born in 1982, eight years before Revillame married actress Princess Punzalan, a daughter of TV host Helen Vela and popular radio announcer Orly Punzalan. 

Despite Merryl’s admission of having bipolarism (manic depressive), she seems to have never had a problem with her ex-lovers nor with the new lovers of her ex. Palanca had for a girlfriend after her Jerika Ejercito, a daughter of ex-President Joseph Estrada with actress Laarni Enriquez. Jerika and Palanca has one son who is now in his pre-teens. 

Meryll and her sons get along well with each other and even with the children of her dad with other women. Revillame has another daughter and a son. 

Meryll dreams of having the people close to her who are also in showbiz to be in her first full-length directorial film, specially the Diamond Star. The niece has appeared with the aunt only once during her childhood. 

The script of that dream full-length film is actually still being finalized by director Mark Meily. It’s original was written by Meryll herself based on the suggestion of National Artist Ricky Lee. 

“Hindi ko nagustuhan ang sarili Kong gawa, kaya naghanap ako ng tutulong sa akin na ayusin yung gawa ako (I am not comfortable with my own work. This is why I looked for help),” confided Meryll on why she has to turn to Meily to touch up her screenplay whose narrative, she says, is very personal. 

There are no talks about Meryll’s well-off father getting involved in the production of her movies. Actually, she has yet to reveal who is bankrolling her dream films. The fulfillment of grand dreams always need a financiers, of course.