Benguet Federation of Small-Scale Miners appeals MGB to lift stoppage order; asks all parties for dialogue to settle mining issues
ITOGON, Benguet– The Benguet Federation of Small Scale Miners, Inc. (BFSSMI) urged the Mines Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to lift the stoppage order against Dontog Manganese Pocket Miners Association (DOMAPMA) mining operations in Sitio Dalicno, Barangay Ampucao here.
In a show of support, the BFSSMI, an aggrupation of more than 50 small-scale mining associations in this province, representing thousands of pocket miners, also appealed to Benguet Corporation (BC) to have a dialogue with DOMAPMA and the affected communities to settle mining issues.
‘We are so concerned on the impact of the stoppage of the livelihood of our brethren in Dalicno, taking into consideration that such displacement and ejection of small-scale miners will result in hunger, poverty, financial difficulties in terms of health and education, and other social problems that may arise,’ BFSSMI statement.
The BFSSMI statement was signed by Norberto M. Cobaldez, the federation president, who together with his board of directors, and presidents of various SSM associations held a press conference on Thursday (June 20) at Sitio Dalicno.
DOMAPMA led by its president Nicholas Tibangwa, Allan Sabiano, and affected individuals-elders, women and youth sectors, among others were also present, and aired their side.
On June 13, Regional Director Fay W. Apil of MGB – CAR, who is also the chairperson of Provincial Mining Regulatory Board (PMRB) of Benguet issued a stoppage order against DOMAPMA and executed by Benguet police force.
‘‘This news shocked the members of the BFSSMI all over the province, thus, we left alarmed and in fear that this action is just the beginning of a series of stoppage activities,” BFSSM states.
‘We are appealing to our local government leaders, government agencies, Indigenous People leaders and other stakeholders to find ways and means in looking for a concrete solution to this long overdue problem of the small-scale mining sector.’
‘‘We fervently pray and hope that the law will not be weaponized against us instead it will be humanized so that the marginalized like us small miners will not be “left behind” as we had been told that “those who have less in life should have more in law”.
Assistant Secretary Tony ‘Boy’ Tabora, Presidential Adviser for Cordillera Region, promised to present to President Marcos Jr. the plight of DOMAPMA.
This came after a local radio broadcaster was able to contact ASec Tabora and sought his help during the press conference, and was relayed to the group.
This developed after BFSSM voiced out their plans during the press meeting to seek support also from Benguet government officials concerned government agencies, and local government units LGUs to come up with a win-win solution to their decades-old problem.
Furthermore, Tibangwa and Sabiano appealed to large-scale mining companies, specifically to BC to give them the opportunity to mine what is left, pointing out that for decades the company (BC) has already extracted a large volume of minerals including gold worth billions of pesos.
They claimed that the area being mined by DOMAPMA is outside the patented claims of BC.
Phoebe Manuel, representing the youth sector, whose parents both pocket miners expressed fear that she and her fellow students in their community may not be able to enroll this school year. Their family has no other source of livelihood except pocket mining therefore, the stoppage order would be a great drawback to their family.
Linda Tibangwa told media men that she was inside one of the portals when the stoppage order was executed by local police, and expressed fear and experienced hunger.
Kagawad Mylene Sabiano of Ampucao stressed that DOMAPMA pocket miners and their families, a cross-section of the community to include Indigenous people- elders, women, and youth sectors regularly conduct environmental programs such as tree planting and clean-up drives to river systems in support to government’s environmental protection efforts. (PR)
