Former Finance Minister claims Government engaged in Ponzi-like scheme

Santo Domingo.- Former Finance Minister Daniel Toribio Marmolejos has criticized the government’s tax reform proposal, stating it stems from the administration being caught in a pyramid Ponzi scheme. He explained that since President Luis Abinader took office in 2020, the government has relied on extraordinary income by seeking advance payments from companies and financial institutions to cover spending.

In a recent interview, Toribio compared this approach to a Ponzi scheme, where money is borrowed to pay off previous debts, eventually leading to a point where there are no resources left to meet obligations. He highlighted that the government secured funds from tax amnesties, advanced payments from large taxpayers, loans from Barrick Gold and commercial banks, and more recently from Aerodom.

Toribio warned that those who provided advance payments, such as banks and taxpayers, are now expecting the government to offset these amounts in their current taxes, revealing the strain on government finances. He emphasized that the push for tax reform is a consequence of this unsustainable financial practice.