Towns dispute Philex tax; each wants 100% share

By Dexter A. See 

TUBA, Benguet – This town and that of nearby Itogon are now engaged in a dispute on where millions of taxes of a mining firm should be remitted.

           

This has prompted Philex Mining Corp. to deposi  around P29 million in escrow to convince municipal officials of Tuba and Itogon to immediately settle their  boundary conflict and avail of benefits of contested business taxes be paid by the company.

           

 Engineer Libby Ricafort, Philex vice president for operations and resident manager, said the P29 million escrow account represented business taxes supposed to be paid by the firm to whichever local government exclusive of export taxes for 2011 alone.

            

“We want to settle whatever are our obligations with our host and neighboring communities in a bid to boost our desire  to sustain our image as an international mining company,” Ricafort said.

           

She added municipal officials of Itogon and Tuba were informed about the escrow account which could be withdrawn anytime provided that there will be a clear cut agreement among the contending parties.

           

 According to Ricafort, contested business taxes will be deposited in the escrow account opened by the mining company until both municipalities decide how they will share the business taxes considering that part of Philex’s operations are also located in Itogon.

            

However, lawyer Eduardo Aratas, Philex’s legal division chief, said the business taxes being contested by the two municipalities prior to 2011 are still being reviewed by the company’s legal experts to determine the validity of the hundreds of millions of pesos imposed by the two local governments on the current mining operations.

           

 Earlier, Tuba and Itogon officials agreed to a 50-50 split on the business taxes supposed to be paid by the mining company covering its operations being claimed by the two municipalities.

           

“We are still in the process of assessing and evaluating the legal basis of the claims of the two local governments on the previous business taxes they have levied on our mining operations,” Aratas said.

           

He added they are now caught in the middle of the fight considering that both Tuba and Itogon already came out with their separate stands on the matter, each demanding a 100 percent remittance by the mining company of its business tax due to either of the local governments.

           

 Philex has been operating its Padcal mine over the past 54 years and has a projected mine life until year 2020.

            

“Both local governments must decisively act on how they will share the business taxes that we have already placed and will be placing in the escrow account so that they will be able to generate more funds to implement their development projects and enhance the delivery of the basic services to their constituents,” Aratas said.

           

He noted accumulated business taxes being claimed by the two municipalities are separate from the corporate social responsibility and social development management projects being funded by the company and implemented in the different host and neighboring communities of the company every year.

           

 Barangays Camp 3 in Tuba and Ampucao in Itogon are claiming parts of the areas of operation of Philex Mining Corporation are located within their respective areas of jurisdiction, thus, they deserve a share from the taxes being paid by the company to the local governments.