The Palace is pleased that the Bureau of Internal Revenue will meet its collection target for the month of March, which only means that Filipino taxpayers are also doing their share to nation building by paying the correct taxes.

BIR Commissioner Jose Bunag has assured the President that the agency will meet the P43-billion target for March. The agency projects that 53% of the targeted P675.4 billion in tax collection this year would come from the BIR’s Large Taxpayers Service.

We believe that a fixed term of the PNP Chief will serve the best interest of the organization and its mission.

At the same time, President Arroyo has always seen to it that only the best and most qualified are appointed to the highest post in the police organization; and she has been vindicated by the exemplary performance of the PNP and its professional loyalty in times of political turmoil.

The Mining Act is a landmark of our growing economy. While President Arroyo welcomes its affirmation by the Supreme Court, she is equally determined to enforce all the environmental safeguards and standards to protect the welfare of our communities and the overall ecological stability of our country.

Responsible and sustainable mining is the policy of this administration. The President believes that social justice must not be sacrificed for economic growth.

Malacanang said today that the People’s Initiative is the most democratic and transparent mode to amend the 1987 Constitution because the people themselves – not elitist politicians – are directly involved in the effort.

In a statement, Press Secretary and concurrent Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye said as the groundswell for charter change mounts, opponents of constitutional reforms are "panicking" as shown in their propaganda against the People’s Initiative which he branded as "downright false, including the non-issue of no-election."

He pointed out that no-election is not even part of the amendment being proposed under the People’s Initiative.

Bunye said Malacanang would have "welcomed the creation of a constituent assembly or constitutional convention to amend" the country’s charter.

But he asserted that the holding of either a constitutional convention or a constituent assembly appears impossible "because of the strong resistance from the Senate, which has the most to lose when the Constitution is amended."

Under the proposed shift from the present presidential to parliamentary form of government, the Senate will be abolished to give way to a unicameral legislative assembly.

Bunye said the self-serving resistance of some senators to charter change was the principal reason why the "people themselves have initiated moves to amend the Constitution."

Reacting to the report quoting Lipa City Archbishop Ramon Arguelles, Bunye said the ongoing efforts to amend the Constitution are meant to "purge the system of political poison" prevailing in the country today.

He assured Archbishop Arguelles that the government will not in any way tolerate any self-serving interests to taint the whole exercise.

Arguelles has expressed concern that the proposal for charter change is being used by some politicians to advance their self-interests.

"We appreciate the concerns of Archbishop Arguelles and we ourselves will not brook any self-serving interests tainting the people’s initiative," Bunye said.

Noting that the present form of government has been the arena of destructive politics and power grabs rooted in self-interest, the Press Secretary said more and more people are seeing the benefit of changing the system.

He expressed the hope that the Church can support the people in this quest.

Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye lamented today the delay in the passage of the proposed anti-smuggling law, saying it is a vital measure that would effectively bolster the government campaign against smugglers.

"The Senate’s foot-dragging on the issue of the proposed anti-smuggling bill is another proof of the gridlock that has long bedeviled the country’s political system," he said in a statement.

Bunye noted that the proposed Anti-smuggling Act of 2005 had already been approved by the House in June last year, but sadly, he said, "it has yet to see the light out of the committee level in the Senate a year after. "

An administration lawmaker, Rep. Lorenzo Tanada III of Quezon, had earlier urged the Senate to fast-track its passage "to show its sincerity in helping government stamp out smuggling in the country."

Tanada, one of the principal authors of the measure, said the government is expected to recover over P90 billion in revenues lost to smuggling once the bill is enacted.

Bunye said the government supports the passage of the anti-smuggling bill as it would effectively bolster the Bureau of Customs’ intensified campaign against smugglers.

"This campaign (against smugglers) has resulted in more revenue collection, and plugging the loophole in the law would allow the government to collect more taxes and duties from imported goods," he said.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will not compromise the welfare of the communities and the country’s overall ecological stability for economic growth, Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye said today.

He was commenting on the Supreme Court’s March 28 decision upholding the constitutionality of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 and its implementing rules and regulations.

Welcoming the court’s ruling, Bunye pointed out that "President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is "determined to enforce all the environmental safeguards and standards to protect the welfare of our communities and the overall ecological stability of our country."

He said the Supreme Court’s decision will pave the way for the development of the country’s mineral resources into economic assets and help fund the government’s urgent program to alleviate poverty in the country.

"The Mining Act is a landmark of our growing economy. While President Arroyo welcomes its affirmation by the Supreme Court, she is equally determined to enforce all the environmental safeguards and standards to protect the welfare of our communities and the overall ecological stability of our country," the presidential spokesman said.

The President has pointed out that mining is the next wave of prosperity in the country, next only to the information technology sector, which has registered a fast-paced growth since 2001.

In promoting the mining industry as an engine of growth and development, the government is deeply conscious and sensitive to environmental concerns, Malacanang said.

"Responsible and sustainable mining is the policy of this administration. The President believes that social justice must not be sacrificed for economic growth," Bunye said.

"The President will protect the people and keep them from harm, while generating well-paying jobs to enable them to lead a dignified life," he added.

Malacaņang is ecstatic over reports that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) exceeded its P43-billion collection target for the month of March, saying the government’s stronger fiscal reforms and the people’s patriotic sense to contribute to nation building all played a role in the revenue agency’s feat.

Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye also lauded the BIR’s Large Taxpayers Service, which accounts for more than half of the agency’s overall collection.

"The agency projects that 53 percent of the targeted P675.4 billion tax collection this year would come from the BIR’s Large Taxpayers Service," he noted.

He called on all Filipino taxpayers to continue exercising their "patriotic duty" to pay the correct taxes to the BIR promptly, stressing that the increased tax collections would help in funding the poverty alleviation programs and services of the government.

"This April, we call on all taxpayers to do their patriotic duty in paying the correct taxes to the BIR. The government is committed to increase tax collection efficiency so that more funds can be allotted to poverty alleviation programs and services," Bunye said.

Meanwhile, BIR Commissioner Jose Mario Buņag said that more value added tax (VAT) collections and higher payments from the country’s largest corporations had contributed to the agency’s surpassing its revenue target for March.