Environmental group backs DENR head

"The ouster call for DENR Secretary Elisea Gozun by Southern Leyte Rep. Aniceto Saludo is a clear maneuver, in support of transnational mining companies, to pressure the government to facilitate the liberalization of the mining industry. Rep. Saludo’s call echoes the relentless complaint of the Chamber of Mines that the DENR is ‘too slow’ in implementing large-scale mining projects and operations in the country," said Clemente Bautista Jr., the national coordinator of the environmental network, Kalikasan-PNE.

"The mining business community appears dissatisfied with Sec. Gozun’s failure to fast-track the approval of the Executive Order and the National Minerals Policy (NMP) that will open the Philippine mining industry to foreign control and plunder," Bautista added. They expected the government to pass the NMP last March 2003, but the DENR was forced to delay it because of strong opposition from mining-affected communities, anti-mining TNCs advocates and environmentalists.

"The DENR secretary is hopelessly teetering to find a compromise for the mining corporate interest and the demands of environmentalists and the mining-affected people. However, Gozun has to accept that there is really no middle ground under the framework of neo-liberal globalization.

She must decide if she is really for the genuine interest of the people and environment or for corporate and foreign mining interest," said Bautista.

Meanwhile, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of DENR organized a national mining conference on Dec. 3-4, 2003, where President Arroyo signed the NMP and an Executive Order to reiterate and reinforce its liberalization policy of the mineral industry.

"The decrepit state of the mining industry is not the handiwork of DENR Secretary Elisea Gozun. It is a reflection of the total bankruptcy of the government’s mining policies and programs which is continuously made to serve foreign and local corporate mining interest, instead of the country’s genuine development and national industrialization.

"With corporate profit and export-orientation motivating the mining industry, our minerals deplete at a fast rate. It foregoes long-term livelihood for our people, while they are made to bear the consequences of massive devastation to the environment like what the Marinduqueños are now experiencing as a result of Marcopper-Placerdome’s irresponsibility and greed, not to mention government negligence," Bautista added.

As of July 30, 2003, the DENR has approved 16 exploration permits (EPs) covering 70,538 hectares, 188 mineral sharing production agreements (MPSAs) covering 314,462 hectares and two financial technical and assistance agreements (FTAAs) covering 51,995 hectares of land.

Last October 2003, DENR has issued a memorandum order cutting the processing time of processing of mining application from 20 months to seven months time. The Arroyo administration currently processes priority-mining projects worth $2.054 billion, hoping to generate $242 million from 12 mining projects until the end of President Arroyo’s term in June 2004.

Bautista reiterated: "To revive the mining industry, the government must pass and implement a minerals policy that will orient our mining industry towards the development of our own metals industry to respond to domestic needs. The extraction of our minerals and their exportation at their raw or semi-processed state must stop now."