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February 25, 2026 | 11:31am
MANILA, Philippines — Groups have requested that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) investigate Sen. Rodante Marcoleta's campaign spending during the 2025 elections.
In a letter addressed to Revenue Commissioner Charlito Mendoza, groups Kontra Daya and Advocates for Public Interest Law asked the bureau to exercise its “investigatory and enforcement authority” over the lawmaker’s potential violations of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) following his public admission of receiving undisclosed campaign contributions.
According to the groups, in an interview aired on Net 25, Marcoleta reportedly admitted to receiving donations for the May 12, 2025, senatorial elections despite declaring "zero" contributions in his sworn Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) filed with the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
“While this admission raises serious concerns under election laws and ethical standards, it likewise gives rise to substantial tax implications that fall squarely within the jurisdiction of the BIR,” the group’s letter read.
Alleged violations. The groups pointed out that under the NIRC, donations are generally subject to donor’s tax unless specifically exempted.
They explained that these exemptions apply only under strict statutory conditions, which include full disclosure and compliance with election laws.
“The admitted and deliberate concealment of campaign donations raises a strong possibility that donor's taxes were neither properly declared nor paid by the donors concerned, whether through non-declaration or mischaracterization of the transactions,” the groups said.
Furthermore, the groups raised the possibility that these undeclared funds could be classified as personal income.
They argued that any portion of the money diverted for personal use, retained, or not strictly applied to legitimate campaign expenses may constitute taxable income for Marcoleta.
“Any failure to report such income would constitute a violation of income tax laws,” the groups explained.
“Given that the SOCE is a sworn document required by law, and that tax liabilities rely on truthful and complete declarations, the deliberate omission of material financial information undermines tax administration and compliance, and warrants thorough investigation by this Honorable Commission,” they added.
During the 2025 elections, Marcoleta placed sixth, bagging 15,140,342 votes.
On February 19, the Comelec said it is set to issue a resolution on Marcoleta's SOCE discrepancy.
The case stems from Marcoleta’s SOCE for the May 2025 elections, in which he reported spending P139.9 million on his campaign but declared zero donations.
In November 2025, the poll body issued a show-cause order directing him to explain those remarks and the apparent discrepancy between his SOCE and his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth.
In his counter-affidavit, Marcoleta argued that the contributions in question were received before he was officially considered a candidate.
