CV scores high in mining taxes collection this year

CEBU, Philippines - Central Visayas posted the highest mining taxes collection this year, says an official of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).

Engineer Romualdo Aguilos said Region 7 collected P79.7 million which accounts to 24.8 percent of the country's total national collection in the distribution of local government unit receipts from the mining sector.

He said it is the second time the region posted the highest collection based on the Philippine Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (PH - EITI) report.

The PH-EITI has conducted the annual provincial roadshow yesterday to inform government agencies, business sector, and civil society organizations about the current efforts undertaken by the PH-EITI Multi-Stakeholders Group (MSG).

PH-EITI MSG is a tripartite body chaired by the Department of Finance. It is composed of national and local representatives from DOF, DENR, Department of Energy, Department of Interior and Local Government, and Union of Local Authorities in the Philippines.

Representatives from the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines, Petroleum Association of the Philippines, and CSOs are also included.

The activity served as an opportunity for the MSG to present the key findings and recommendations to mining stakeholders in the Philippines.

The two-day conference includes a workshop on Environment and Natural Resources Data Management Tool (ENRDMT), an online reporting tool for LGUs that serves as a platform to enable reporting and monitoring of direct payments made to LGUs by extractive industries and information on mandatory and other expenditures coming from the LGU receipts/collections from extractive industries.

Cebu Governor Hilario Davide III said that one of the development agenda of his administration is environmental protection.

Davide said the Capitol requires business firms to plant and nurture trees on top of the Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) mandated by the DENR.

ECC ensures that a particular development project will not have any adverse impact on the environment prior to any project operation.

"Kadtong mga taga Cebu nga naa ron diri nag-quarry, pangayuon gyud na. Wa'y permit ma-renew kung di mahatag ang duha ka tanom, duha ka kahoy kada kubiko. Maningil gyud mi niana," he said. (FREEMAN)