SENATE OFFICE, Manila, March 5, 2011-During the Wednesday’s Commission and Appointments hearing, Senator Edgardo J. Angara, vice-chair of the Senate Committee on Finance warned Department of Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima to confirm reports that the Philippines precious natural resources are being sold below market prices.
Angara said that it is ridiculous that we are selling out the rights to our country’s natural resources so cheaply and practically giving away our farmlands, forests, fisheries to anyone willing to fork over the minimum amount needed which is not even at market prices, explaining that to acquire a mining claim here is at ease while the other countries guard their territories intimately so that they can derive significant income from this option.
“I am questioning the stagnant rate of growth in some areas of the nation’s economy,” Angara said, adding that our GDP has shown huge growth in the last decade where he believed that since 1997 around 30 percent increase, but no considerable improvement on other areas of the economy.
“What about the continuing efforts on regular tax collections? These provide dependable income from neutral sources such as the rich and abundant natural resources that we have,” he asked, saying that the abundant resources of the country are not being put to good use.
To provide sizeable source of revenue in the future, the Senator called on the interim Finance chief to create a structural pricing scheme to regulate the use of the country’s natural resources where he advised the secretary to act on the matter as soon as possible.
Purisima was advised by Angara to mark all of the nation’s resources from land to airwaves as the nation’s new fiscal chief. Angara furthered that there is a need to regulate their use to have a sustainable source of revenue and at the same time preventing overstretching the resources of the country. (Jason de Asis)
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