Headline
Marcos eyes VAT from partially-processed ore exports
Marcos also emphasized the need to push for “clean mining” in the country, citing its negative environmental impact. (File Photo: Bongbong Marcos/Facebook)
MANILA – Instead of increasing taxes on mining, President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Monday said he is eyeing the collection of value-added taxes (VAT) from the export of partially-processed ore.
“What we would like to do is encourage that the value added [taxes] to the raw ore stay in the Philippines as much as possible. Whether there should be fiscal measures in that regard is something we have not decided on and what the levels that will be. But I think what we are trying to achieve, the desired result for all of this, is instead of exporting raw ore, we export at least partially-processed ore so that may value added that’s left in the Philippines,” he said in a press briefing in Mandaluyong City.
Marcos also emphasized the need to push for “clean mining” in the country, citing its negative environmental impact.
“I cannot believe that here in the Philippines we cannot monitor and regulate the mining industry sufficiently so that we can have clean mining in the country,” he said.
He lamented that practices in the mining industry in the country remain problematic.
“We have to view the natural resources as a national treasure which can help the Philippines a great deal. It is only up to us to ensure that the practices that we see in the mining operations in the country are such that they are environmentally neutral,” he added.
Earlier, the economic team of outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte pushed for the revival of the mining industry to generate more jobs.
Duterte has repeatedly urged the mining industry to observe stricter environmental rules or risk getting shut down.
In April 2021, Duterte issued an executive order lifting the nine-year moratorium on mineral agreements to spur economic growth and support projects and programs of the government.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources, in December 2021, issued an administrative order lifting the four-year ban on the open-pit method of mining.
'Azer Parrocha
Darlynz Gomez
June 21, 2022 at 1:35 PM
Great idea borrow money from China so the Chinese mining companies can hire a Chinese contractor to build ,operate and maintain the processing plants.
Why are foreign owned mining companies permitted to export unprocessed ore in the first place. Philippines suffers the environmental consequences with little benefits, the raw ore is even ship predominantly on Chinese vessels.
Judith Lovendino
June 21, 2022 at 6:19 PM
OH GREAT! Coming from the TAX EVADER himself.😆
His term hasn’t started yet, but we are already seeing the real plan of BBM’s presidency: To launder off the filth behind the Marcos name and Ferdinand Sr.’s Martial Law, and to skirt their court convictions and tax liabilities. Goodluck Philippines.
Cecille Moreno
June 21, 2022 at 4:20 PM
Indeed mining is a important to our economy but still it proves to be hazardous to environment and produces tragic incidents we can ever imagine.If they plan to revive the mining industry may the government will be able to secure the people that it will not be a source of corruption and abuse of large mining companies as well as those government officials who will be responsible in assessing if such companies will operate or not.