Friday, November 23, 2007 Cotabato guv, PB file suit vs PNOC By Malu Cadelina Manar Of SunStar General Santos
KIDAPAWAN CITY -- There's no holding back members of the Provincial Board of North Cotabato, led by Vice Gov. Emmanuel Piñol, from filing a suit against the Philippine National Oil Company-Energy Development Corporation (PNOC-EDC) over drilling operations of another geothermal well on Mt. Apo.
Their move is also supported by Cotabato Gov. Jesus Sacdalan, who, after getting hold of the copy of PB resolution, immediately ordered his legal officer to file the necessary petition before the Regional Trial Court.
On Tuesday, the PB passed a resolution urging Sacdalan to file legal action against the PNOC-EDC. The PB wants the operations stopped, pointing out that PNOC did not consult the concerned local government units when it started drilling activities in the area last month.
The petition, Piñol said, would be filed before the court anytime on Friday afternoon, right after provincial officials conduct an ocular visit at the geothermal site on Mt. Apo, the country's highest peak.
During the site visit, provincial lawmakers will verify if the drilling operations are within or outside the 701 hectares allotted for geothermal exploration.
"If it's outside, it definitely violated the existing provincial environment code," Piñol said.
The PB members would be accompanied by technical experts from the province and would use a global positioning system (GPS) equipment to determine if the drilling operations fall within the allotted area.
"Matagal na ito'ng ugali ng national government at ng national government agencies na binabalewala ang mga LGUs (This is usually what the national government and its agencies do. They take for granted the LGUs)," said Piñol in a radio interview.
One perfect example, he stressed, was when President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued an executive order that declared Mount Apo an eco-industrial zone.
"The President did that without consulting us here at the local level," Piñol said.
The drilling operations of PNOC-EDC, according to other members of the PB, violated the existing memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed in the late '80s before the start of the geothermal activities on Mount Apo.
Also, what irked Piñol all the more was the failure of the PNOC-EDC to provide a separate distribution line for power consumers in North Cotabato to spare them from power interruptions affecting the Mindanao power grid.
"Our power consumers also do not enjoy lower power rates even if the bulk of the power is generated from our area," he stressed.
On Friday, the governor, together with other members of the PB, will troop to the RTC in Kidapawan City to formally ask the court to stop the PNOC-EDC from undertaking any operations on Mt. Apo.
