MANILA, Philippines — Two senators have raised alarms over reports that the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) repository of taxpayers’ information is empty, prompting calls for an official investigation.

The issue emerged during the Senate blue ribbon committee’s inquiry into alleged corruption at the BIR, specifically involving letters of authority (LOAs) that empower revenue officers to examine taxpayers’ books and records for compliance.

Senate President Pro Tempore and panel chairman Panfilo Lacson addressed the concern directly to BIR Commissioner Charlito Mendoza, saying, “Our report here is that you have no basis to compare the PAN, the FAN, and the 0605 because they are supposedly empty. Kindly investigate, Commissioner.”

PAN refers to Preliminary Assessment Notice, FAN is Final Assessment Notice, and BIR Form 0605 is used for paying taxes.

“Why is it empty? Was it done on purpose so that we have no records to refer to…?” Lacson asked.

Senator Erwin Tulfo echoed the concern, noting that a source within the BIR confirmed the agency’s web-based monitoring system was blank. “They saw that it was empty, so no investigating body can check how much was paid to the government, how much was assessed, or how much actually went to the government. So you really have to investigate that,” he said.

Commissioner Mendoza initially explained that the system was not updated when he assumed office last month. However, Lacson stressed that the problem appears to be more than a delay in updates.

“But the thing is, if you can still reconstruct manually or through some other means, please do that so that we’ll be able to unearth a lot of information,” Lacson added.

Mendoza assured the panel that the BIR has begun reconstructing its Iris system to recover missing records and ensure proper monitoring going forward.