VietNamNet Bridge – The Quang Nam provincial People’s Council’s members have suggesting closing two gold mines in Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son to protect the area’s natural resources.

The hottest topic discussed at the 12th session of the Quang Nam provincial People’s Council meeting on December 11 was the uncooperative attitude of the Canadian Besra Group, owner of the two companies that mine gold in Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son.

The companies still have not paid hundreds of billions of dong worth of debt it owes to banks, businesses and small merchants.

Nguyen Canh, secretary of the Phu Ninh district’s Party Committee, raised a series of questions relating to the tax payment of the Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son Gold companies.

Head of the Quang Nam provincial Taxation Agency, Ngo Bon, reported that the tax debt has reached VND339 billion, of which Phuoc Son has to pay VND270 billion and Bong Mieu VND68 billion.

Bon said the taxation agency has “applied all legal measures to force the two gold companies to pay tax”. However, it still cannot collect them, and this is “beyond the taxation agency’s capacity”.

People believe that Bon had implied that there was an intervention by the ministries and central agencies, which Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son had contacted and asked for help.

Doan Van Vien, chair of the Quang Nam provincial Party Committee’s Inspection Board, said the Vietnamese agencies had not been determined enough in this case.

Thus, they helped “pave the way” for the two gold companies to defy Vietnamese laws.

Vien said the central agencies and local authorities must take necessary measures to force the two companies to abide by the laws.

“I suggest closing the two gold mines Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son to protect natural resources. The policemen acting as security guards at the two mines should be recalled. And it is necessary to punish the gold miners for polluting the environment,” Vien said.

Bui Ngoc Son, MA, from the Economics and Politics Research Institute, noted that the Quang Nam provincial People’s Council member is justified in suggesting the the two mines be closed.

“Vietnam has gained nothing from the Phuoc Son and Bong Mieu gold mines, while it has lost national natural resources,” Son said.

Pham Truong Dan, deputy director of the Quang Nam Police, confirmed that closing Bong Mieu and Phuoc Son was a proposal made by many local People’s Council members, who said that all businessmen must pay tax to the state, and if not, operation licenses must be revoked.

However, Dan said that only central agencies can make the decision on whether to close the gold mines.    

Dat Viet