SOME of the suspended mining firms last year, under the order of former Environment and Natural Resources secretary Gina Lopez, are already waiting for the special mining review committee’s recommendation to resume their respective operations.
In May of last year, President Rodrigo Duterte appointed Rey Cimatu to replace Gina Lopez after her appointment was rejected by the Commission of Appointments. Lopez’ term was rather controversial with her order to close down 23 mining firms nationwide as they were located near a watershed and might affect the potable area.
Included in the mining firms ordered to be closed was Mindanao Business Council (MinBC) president Vicente Lao’s Mt. Sinai Mining Exploration and Development Corporation. According to Lao, president Duterte formed a special mining committee which is currently headed by the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). The committee’s mandate is to review all the pronouncements and the orders made by Lopez.
Lao added that Lopez had decided on a lot of things without undergoing the proper process.
“For you to cancel an existing mine, you have to go through the process of evaluation. For example, if there are violations of the standards of a mining company, you give them a chance to correct it, not immediately cancel their permits. That’s not how it is. We are in a democratic country here. Of course I am not saying that everything is okay in the mining sector, there are also scalawags. But what I’m saying is there is a process. If you want to cancel a mining operation, you have to go through a process,” he said.
Some of the mining corporations in Surigao with operations cancelled and suspended had long ago resumed with their operations.
“A lot of the mining companies in Surigao disregarded her order. They are still operating and the new secretary of DENR acknowledges that. Some of them are even shipping out now… For example, the order of Gina Lopez to ban the open pit mining has already been lifted by secretary Cimatu. Lopez had done a lot of things illegal which secretary Cimatu is trying to correct now,” he added.
Even though specific mining companies in Mindanao had already resumed operation, Lao said Mt. Sinai Mining Exploration and Development Corporation has yet to start operating again. They are still waiting for the recommendation of the special committee together with the other suspended mining firms.
When their suspension last year was announced, they sent Lopez a request for consideration which was not addressed and, according to Lao, is still currently pending under DENR.
“The mining sector is being prudent. Since the president already ordered a review, we will be patient and wait for the review committee’s recommendation. But we feel very strongly that the mining sector will be vindicated in that review because the mining companies did nothing wrong, like my company for example. They [Lopez’ team] did not even send an inspector there. All of a sudden, we just found out in the newspaper that our mining company is already being cancelled,” Lao said adding that they are more hopeful of Cimatu’s term given his objectivity to address problems relating to his job.
He urged the public to look at the mining industry’s overall picture and not just of the small illegal miners. He believes the bigger mining companies are practicing responsible mining.
“I think with the objective DENR secretary, who is very fair in decision making, I think the mining industry will recover in 2018,” he said.
The 23 mining firms ordered for closure by Lopez last year were Benguet Corporation,Ore Asia Mining and Development Corporation, Benguet Corp Nickel Mines Incorporated, Eramen Minerals Incorporated, LNL Archipelago Minerals Incorporated, Zambales Diversified Metals Corporation, Mt. Sinai Mining Exploration and Development Corporation, Emir Minerals Corporation, TechIron Mineral Resources Incorporated, AAMPHIL Natural Resources Exploration, Oriental Synergy Mining Corporation, SinoSteel Philippines HY Mining Corporation, Kromico Incorporated, Oriental Vision Mining Philippines Corporation, Wellex Mining Corporation, and Libjo Mining Corporation.
Those from Surigao del Norte were Adnama Mining Resources Corporation, Claver Mineral Development Corporation, Hinatuan Mining Corporation, CTP Construction and Mining Corporation, Carrascal Nickel Corporation, Marcventures Mining and Development Corporation, and Platinum Group Metals Corporation.