‘Rogue’ miner gets award for responsible mining

MANILA, Philippines — The Palace has again conferred the presidential mining award on a firm earlier tagged by President Duterte as a “rogue” miner and which is facing a string of criminal cases.

In yet another irony, SR Metal Inc. of Francis Enrico Gutierrez has been given the Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Award (PMIEA) for the third consecutive year despite having been non-operational for the last six months.

Gutierrez was also reportedly the financier of the Liberal Party during the 2016 elections. Another SRMI top executive, Caloocan Rep. Edgar Erice, served as LP spokesman during the campaign of defeated presidential candidate Mar Roxas.

In his previous speeches, Duterte repeatedly slammed the nickel mining operations of SR Mining in Tubay, Agusan del Norte saying “they are into open-pit mining and destroy the soil along the way.”

The annual award, according to the PMIEA in the Philippines, is for the mining firm’s efforts in achieving environmentally and socially responsible surface mining and mineral-processing operations.

According to the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association (PMSEA), which organized the awards as part of the Annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference (ANMSEC), the SRMI is recognized for its surface mining operations.