Social media is currently enlivened with calls for a tax strike in the aftermath of the case of the son of Directorate General of Taxes official Rafael Alun Trisambodo, Mario Dandy, who mistreated David, the son of GP Ansor’s central board until he fell into a coma. Mario is known to often show off his wealth on social media, making netizens highlight his parents’ wealth. Rafel is known to be a tax official at the echelon III level at the Directorate General of Taxes. Investigated, Rafael’s wealth is estimated at IDR 56 billion. A number of luxury vehicles such as Rubicon and Harley that Mario showed off on social media were also apparently not included in the State Implementation Assets Report (LHKPN). In the aftermath of the case and the revelation of the luxurious lifestyle of tax officials, netizens were furious and called for a boycott of filling out the Annual Tax Return (SPT) and tax payments. So, will the call for a tax strike from some people have an impact on reducing state tax revenue? And are there any sanctions for citizens who go on a tax strike?
Mario Dandy Case Chronology at a Glance
The persecution case committed by the son of a tax official, Mario Dandy, against David, the son of the GP Ansor board, occurred on February 20, 2023. The incident allegedly started when Mario’s girlfriend, A, told him that she had received unfavorable treatment from David (her ex-boyfriend). After several ways were made to meet, Mario came and mistreated David repeatedly. He allegedly punched, kicked him in the face, back of the head and neck, until he was helpless and fell into a coma. Not alone, Mario carried out the persecution with his friend with the initials S. Mario allegedly asked S to record the persecution. As a result of this action, Mario was arrested by the police and has been named a suspect at the South Jakarta Metro Police. Investigators charged him with multiple articles and threatened with five years in prison. Not only that, starting from February 23, 2023, Prasetya Mulya University as the institution where Mario studied has also issued an official statement to expel Mario from campus. After a few days, his friend with the initials S was also named a suspect because he was considered to have committed negligence in the persecution. In the aftermath of the case, the name of Mario Dandy’s father, Rafael Alun Trisambodo, was also dragged because he was considered to have unnatural wealth. KPK also summoned Rafael Alun Trisambodo to be questioned regarding his wealth.
Sri Mulyani’s Response
The Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, did not remain silent in the face of this situation. She removed Rafael Alun Trisambodo as Mario’s parent from the position of Head of General Section at the Regional Office of the Directorate General of Taxes (Regional Office of DGT) Jakarta II. This removal is based on Article 31 of Government Regulation (PP) No. 94 of 2021 concerning Discipline of Civil Servants (PNS). After being removed from his position, Rafael Alun Trisambodo also resigned from his position as a State Civil Apparatus (ASN). In addition to removing Rafael Alun Trisambodo, Sri Mulyani asked that the big motorcycle club (moge) at the Directorate General of Taxes be disbanded. In fact, he also gave punishment to hundreds of fraudsters at the Ministry of Finance. Not only that, Sri Mulyani also responded to the public’s call for a strike on reporting tax returns and tax payments in the aftermath of the persecution by the son of tax official Rafael Alun Trisambodo, Mario Dandy. She revealed that she understood the views and expressions of disappointment of the people who questioned whether the Ministry of Finance, in this case the Directorate General of Taxes (DGT), was a trusted institution. Despite the case of persecution and hedonism of a tax official’s son, Sri Mulyani emphasized that her party will still maintain integrity and professionalism to manage state revenues. Her party will continue to channel the obligation to spend state money for various community assistance. Sri Mulyani further explained that for 2023, her party will spend Rp608.3 trillion of state money for education, Rp168 trillion for health, and Rp479 trillion for social assistance and protection, as well as community and economic infrastructure development.
Citizens Strike to Pay Tax, What are the Sanctions?
Although there are many calls for a tax strike, Executive Director of Pratama-Kreston Tax Research Institute (TRI), Prianto Budi Saptono, said that Mario Dandy’s case will not affect tax revenue. This is reflected in the cases that ensnared other tax officials, such as Angin Prayitno Aji. The impact on SPT reporting is also estimated to be minimal. According to him, the Directorate General of Taxes already has complete instruments to monitor tax compliance. Tax officers can even issue ‘love letters’ to taxpayers who do not report tax returns and pay taxes, as well as conduct examinations to tax criminal investigations. Yes, taxpayers who are late or do not report tax returns and pay taxes can be subject to administrative sanctions or fines. This is in accordance with Law (UU) No. 28 of 2007 concerning General Provisions and Tax Procedures (UU KUP). Article 7 explains that administrative sanctions in the form of fines are imposed at IDR 100 thousand for individual taxpayers and IDR 1 million for corporate taxpayers. In addition, the imposition of criminal sanctions is also regulated in Article 39 which reads, every person who intentionally does not submit a tax return or submits a tax return and / or information whose contents are incorrect or incomplete so as to cause losses to state revenue, will be subject to criminal sanctions. The sanction is imprisonment for a minimum of six months and a maximum of six years, and a fine of at least twice the amount of tax payable that is not or underpaid and a maximum of four times the amount of tax payable that is not or underpaid.
Let’s Pay Tax and Feel the Benefits!
From the explanation above, it can be concluded that the expression of disappointment in the aftermath of the persecution case committed by Mario Dandy is indeed natural. However, do not let this make us as Indonesian citizens neglect our obligation to pay taxes. This is because taxes have become dues that must be paid by all people to the government. Moreover, taxes are also very beneficial for the community and the state. Routine tax reporting and payment results in various benefits, both for the community, entrepreneurs, and the country itself, including the following:
- For the development of various infrastructures including roads, public transportation, hospitals, schools, etc.
- Food and fuel subsidies
- Demonstrate the credibility of the company
- Getting a loan is easier
- Regulate and maintain the stability of the country’s economy
So, if citizens do not pay taxes, it is certain that the country’s infrastructure development will be hampered and will certainly be subject to sanctions in the form of fines and even criminal sanctions in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
KH Contact
How about it, have you paid your taxes regularly? For information, reporting and payment of personal tax return can be done from March 1-31, 2023 and January 1-30, 2023 for corporate tax return. So, don’t forget to report and pay your tax return on time to avoid fines and sanctions! For those of you who currently have a company and do not want to be complicated in taking care of corporate taxation issues, KH Pals can just leave it to Kontrak Hukum.
READ ALSO: Why Reporting Annual Tax Return is Important?
Of course, it is easier and more efficient to calculate taxes with Kontrak Hukum because we provide Monthly SPT and Annual SPT services starting from only Rp3 million. For more information, please visit KH Services – Finance & Tax page or consult with us at Ask KH and via Direct Message (DM) to Instagram @kontrakhukum.
