ADVERTISEMENTAmong the BSP’s buying stations, those in Baguio and Davao are the closest to the country’s largest gold mines. 11256, or An Act to Strengthen the Country’s Gross International Reserves, exempted all accredited small-scale miners and gold traders from paying income and excise taxes for gold sold to the BSP. David said data for 2021 was still being collected and the BSP had yet to determine the major sources of gold sold to it. In the meantime, Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu earlier ordered a crackdown on underground pocket mining operations without government-regulated safeguards here and in parts of the Cordillera. Cimatu’s order, issued prior to the pandemic outbreak, came following the September 2018 landslide that killed 30 people, including mining families at the Benguet mining town of Itogon.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer October 08, 2021 21:33 UTC