Friday, October 26, 2007 Rift remains at Sagittarius Mines
TAMPAKAN, South Cotabato -- Foreign-backed Sagittarius Mines, Inc was a no show on a dialogue here to thresh out the labor problem with the workers.
South Cotabato Governor Daisy Avance Fuentes announced last week that officials of Sagittarius and disgruntled company workers were set to meet on October 13, but a visit here Saturday yielded nothing of that sort.
There was no mammoth crowd or placards at the town proper screaming support or insults against the company, which was paralyzed early this month for five days after workers padlocked its main office and set up barricades on roads leading to the firm's base camp.
Acting Vice Mayor Relly Leysa said in a text message the meeting did not push through because the Sagittarius management did not confirm participation to the event.
But at the town's parish center, Fr. Romeo Catedral, social action director of the Diocese of Marbel, took the day to brief Gagmay na Kristohanong Katilingban (GKK) leaders from the town's far-flung areas about the mining activity in the area.
"Tamkapan is now very popular in the international mining community because the project has the backing of Xstrata Copper and the Australian firm Indophil Resources NL," he told the leaders.
The priest also highlighted the struggle of the workers, who have been pressing for regular position. The firm has opened up at least 37 jobs for regular positions to the general public. But the workers slammed the move, saying that the existing pool of workers can fill the slots.
The firm has expressed its interest to resolve the matter with the workers through a dialogue in the last several days, even proposing several parameters.
Gerardo Laviste, Sagittarius project manager, said the firm is prepared for constructive and transparent dialogue with the protesters now that the "illegal actions" have been lifted, referring to the picket conducted by the employees.
In a letter sent to Acting Mayor Pedro Cagas on October 7, Laviste proposed that a dialogue be attended by "independent and credible" mediators in the persons of Cagas and former Tampakan Mayor Claudius Barroso, now South Cotabato deputy governor.
Catedral scoffed at the proposal, telling the GKK leaders that Barroso, who served the town for three terms as mayor, had admitted having some shares to the Tampakan project.
In his incumbency, Barroso, who was replaced by his son Bienvenido but now in jail for murder charges, strongly backed the operations of Sagittarius.
Sagittarius and the local government of Tampakan last October 4 forged a document titled "Principle Agreement" to diffuse the tension brought by the protesting workers.
It was handwritten and signed by 11 local government officials and two officials of Sagittarius.
The document seeks to forge an agreement between the local government unit, Sagittarius and the workers relative to their demand.
"There will be a continuing dialogue at least once a month [between the parties involved]," it said.
But there has been no dialogue between the parties since the company resumed normal operations last October 8 after the padlocks and roadblocks were removed.(BSS)
