Senior Revenue Deputy Commissioner Joel Tan-Torres decided Tuesday to take over the management and operation of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) following the sudden resignation of former revenue chief Sixto Esquivias.

Tan-Torres told a hastily prepared news conference that Malacañang has not yet named a replacement to Esquivias, but decided anyway to take over the function of the revenue commissioner based on Executive Order No. 827 creating the post of senior deputy commissioner.

Under the same presidential directive, the senior deputy commissioner is mandated to take over the functions of the BIR chief in case of his absence.

He also said that on-going operations to raise more money for the government will not be disrupted by Esquivias leaving his post because the management is united in pursuing current programs, "and all we have to do is to sustain such activities".

Tan-Torres like Esquivias practically grew in the BIR starting in 1980 as technical assistant of then Revenue Commissioner Tomas C. Toledo.

He served the BIR until 1996 when he resigned as Assistant commissioner for management and planning service in 1996 to join the prestigious Sycip, Gorres and Velayo accounting firm.

A consistent honor student, Tan-Torres topped the accountancy board exams in 1979 and holds masters and doctorate degrees in taxation and public administration.

Two months ago, President Arroyo named Tan-Torres senior BIR deputy commissioner to assist management in strengthening its tax collection and administration systems in a bid to wipe out the bureau's P39-billion collection deficit during the first nine months of the year.

The bureau is tasked to raise P798 billion this year.

Esquivias went to his office for the last time yesterday morning and cited to well-wishers health and the sagging collection record as the reasons for leaving the service "to be left alone in peace and end all speculations."

But his close aides said tax take records and health problems have nothing to do with Esquivias resignation but conflict with finance officials on sensitive issues like the proposed new scheme in the collection of excise tax from cigarette producers as well as the selection of field officials to head tax-rich regional and district offices in Metro Manila, free from political interference.

They said even fiscal authorities have conceded that the collection goal of the agency is unrealistic and could not be reached even if a god is named chief tax collector provided he would not perform any miracle.

Revenue official explained that the 2009 collection goal was fixed long before the worldwide economic crisis hit the country and did not consider losses from from the recent tax eroding measures that granted individual and corporate taxpayers higher tax exemption grants.

They said tax collection program was also devastated by the recent typhoons "Ondy" and "Pepeng."

They said huge withholding and value added taxes were also inputed in the collection goal from the projected sales of government bonds by the Bureau of Treasury which did not push through.