from Tampakan

By Othel V. Campos

SAGITTARIUS Mines Inc. obtained a business permit from the municipality of Tampakan after a legal battle which saw the Court of Tax Appeals granting a preliminary injunction in favor of the company after being incorrectly assessed by the LGU for nearly P400 million in alleged deficient taxes, a top executive said Wednesday.

SMI legal and compliance manager

Stella Joy Segocio highlighted CTA’s initial findings that SMI did not employ “fraud and misrepresentation” when it applied for a business permit as a manufacturer.

“SMI has and will always comply with the law and will continue to do the right thing in all of its activities,” she said. She said the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. identified mining as a strategic investment and a “key driver in our recovery and long-term growth.”

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of

Town

South Cotabato declared as ultra vires and onerous the numerous provisions of Tampakan’s Revised Municipal Revenue Code of 2022 that would have imposed new or increased business taxes on companies operating in Tampakan.

It also asked the LGU “to stop the enforcement of the provisions of the ordinance declared invalid.”

Tampakan issued SMI’s 2023 business permit after the company paid P24,579 in regulatory and other fees, below what the LGU previously taxed the mining firm.

The business permit is a significant document that will allow SMI to commence construction and to operate the Tampakan Copper-Gold Project, one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits in the world.

SMI said it continues to invest in the development of stakeholders and host communities, in addition to honoring and respecting the rights of the B’laan Indigenous Peoples in the area.

INSURANCE PAYMENT.

Government Service Insurance System president and general manager Wick Veloso (left) turns over the P100-million check to acting Postmaster General and chief executive Luis Carlos representing initial payment for the insurance claim damage su ered by the Manila Central Post O ce in May 2023. The payment is intended to cover the urgent needs of Philpost in rehabilitating the MCPO building. The full compensation will be paid by GSIS after evaluation of the adjuster’s report and approval of the nal settlement o er.