As of June 1, the Digital Service Act will impose a 12% tax on every digital service we rely on: Netflix, Steam, Disney Plus, Google Drive, Canva, Capcut Pro, you name it. For those of us whose livelihoods depend on these tools, this isn’t just a price hike: it’s a gut punch. And the anger boiling over on social media isn’t about the money – it’s about the betrayal. Every peso we’re forced to cough up will vanish into the black hole of government corruption, leaving us with nothing but empty promises and crumbling infrastructure.

I’m beyond pissed. I live and breathe digital. These platforms aren’t just apps – they’re my lifeline. That extra 12% doesn’t seem like much, but it’s a lot for many digital freelancers who are just scraping by. But that extra 12% I’ll be forking over won’t build better roads, faster internet, or safer airports. It’ll line the pockets of corrupt officials who treat our taxes like their personal piggy bank. Imagine, the Philippines already has the highest VAT rate in ASEAN, a whopping 12%, compared to Singapore’s 9% or Malaysia’s 6%. Those countries deliver world-class services for their taxes. Us? We get nothing but promises during election time and ringing phones when we call for help.

Take the recent NAIA tragedy. An 8-million-peso bollard, supposed to protect lives, turned out to be just a decorative scam, a compliance checkbox that failed when it mattered most, leaving two people dead, including a 4-year-old kid. That’s what our taxes buy: overpriced, useless infrastructure and death traps built by contractors who’d sell their kids for a kickback. And now they want more? For what? Another vanity project? A third house for his newest mistress?

I’d gladly pay the tax if it meant corporations paid their fair share and I saw real value for my money, like better schools, reliable power, or an airport that doesn’t kill people. But no. That 12% will just fuel the government’s corruption machine, while Pinoys are left wondering if they can still afford the tools they need to feed their family. Every Filipino scraping by, every freelancer, every digital nomad: they’re all getting screwed. And the worst part? We’re not just paying for services; we’re paying for the privilege of being robbed blind by a government that doesn’t give a damn.

This isn’t about taxes. It’s about theft. It’s about a system that preys on us while we dodge the next collapsing bridge or scam project that’ll claim lives. I’m f*cking angry – and you should be too.