Through a press release, he explained that the resources collected from a fuel tax destined for the renovation of public transportation vehicles were deposited in Fund 2073 of the National Treasury and were never used.
Donald Guerrero, former Minister of Finance, issued a statement in which he responded to Antonio Marte, public transportation businessman and senator of the Fuerza del Pueblo (FP) - PRM alliance for Santiago Rodriguez, that the resources derived from the collection of the RD$2.00 per gallon (RD$2/gallon) fuel tax corresponding to the proportion destined for the renewal of the vehicular fleet "were accumulated and preserved intact, receiving the admiration of the new government, in account 2073 of the National Treasury".
The reaction of the former official of Danilo Medina's government comes in relation to the complaint introduced by Marte before the Attorney General's Office last Thursday, May 13, to investigate for prevarication and corruption three high-level officials, among them him, of the past government in relation to the destination given to funds from the aforementioned tax.
"What Senator Antonio Marte and those who accompany him in the complaint filed in the Attorney General's Office are carrying out is a crude and malicious manipulation of public opinion with the vile purpose of damaging reputations through media and social judgment."
In Marte's complaint, reference is made to the fact that former ministers Gustavo Montalvo, Jose Ramon Peralta and Donald Guerrero used seventeen billion (RD$17 billion) in the "illegal asphalt program", when they should have been used by INTRANT for road development and the change or restructuring of deteriorated transport fleets. The resources referred to by the senator come from the provisions of Article 20 of Law No. 253-12.
The law establishes that 25% of the amount collected is destined to the public transportation fleet. The former minister's statement explains that "in its Paragraph I, (the law) states that this tax shall be collected by the General Directorate of Internal Taxes (DGII). In its Paragraph II, it establishes that the estimated collection for this concept will be assigned in the General Budget of the State. The Ministry of the Presidency will coordinate the use of said fund and will identify the programs and projects to be financed".
Collections and Fund 2073
According to the communiqué, from December 2012 to August 2020, when the last government administration concluded, 25% of the amount collected from the additional selective tax on diesel and gasoline amounted to RD$2,592.2 million. The remaining 75% of the amount collected was RD$7,776.6 million. The total amounted to RD$10,368.8 million. "It is false, therefore, that a fund of RD$17,000 million was available for the transport fleet, as has been pointed out by the transport businessman and senator Antonio Marte."
The resources collected from this tax and which corresponded to 25% for the renewal of the vehicle fleet were deposited in full in Fund 2073 of the National Treasury and were never used, the statement said. "In said Fund, up to August 10, 2020, there was RD$2,552.4 million available. This amount is obtained by subtracting from the RD$2,592.2 million collected, as reported by the DIGEPRES, some RD$39.8 million corresponding to reportable arrears in the receipt of these funds by the National Treasury." This backlog, less than 2% of the total, is normalized at the end of the year when the budgetary accounts are closed.
Donald Guerrero says in his communiqué that neither the Ministry of the Presidency nor INTRANT executed expenditures with them. "In other words: during the government of Danilo Medina these resources were never used or disbursed. Therefore, it is reckless and irresponsible to say that these resources were spent by the past authorities, since the same remained in a specialized fund of the National Treasury (2073) upon the departure of the previous government."
The resources collected from the RD$2 per gallon tax and which corresponded to 75% for road network purposes were deposited in full in Fund 2075 of the National Treasury.