STANDING GUARD Antiriot policemen stand guard to prevent any untoward incident between anti- and pro-mining supporters who gathered on Wednesday in front of the South Cotabato provincial capitol. —BONG S. SARMIENTO
KORONADAL CITY—Saying it was hastily decided and includes questionable provisions, South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. has vetoed the controversial measure passed by the provincial board two weeks ago lifting the ban on open-pit mining in the province.
Tamayo announced his decision in a public statement at the provincial capitol on Friday afternoon, a day before the deadline for him to act on the amendment of the 12-year-old Ordinance No. 22 or the South Cotabato Environment Code.
“I am informing the general public of South Cotabato that Resolution No. 137, enacting Ordinance No. 23 series of 2022 amending pertinent provisions of the Environment Code of South Cotabato is vetoed by the provincial governor,” he said.
The governor said he mainly heeded the recommendation made by the technical working committee earlier created by his office to study the amendment of the code, specifically the ban on open-pit mining contained in Section 22.
In his formal veto message to Vice Gov. Vicente de Jesus and the board members, Tamayo said the amended ordinance is “prejudicial to the public welfare and inimical to the overall interest” of South Cotabato residents.
“I could not find any compelling reason why the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) would amend a decade-old ordinance that ably and effectively [protected] the people of South Cotabato from the ill effects of the wanton destruction of our God-given resources by the multinational corporations which will only leave the province after the extraction of our natural wealth,” Tamayo emphasized.
The SP approved the proposed changes without any objection on second and third reading during its regular session on May 16 despite opposition from various sectors and neighboring local governments.
Tamayo said that while he found the open-pit mining ban “ultra vires” or beyond the authority of the provincial government being contrary to existing national policy, the provincial board appeared to have rushed its decision on the matter.
He said the amended ordinance also included a provision setting the mandatory review of the code every 10 years, instead of every five years.
South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr.
No effect on Tampakan
Tamayo said his decision did not affect the fate of the planned $5.9-billion large-scale copper and gold mining project of Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI) in Tampakan town, noting that the local government’s jurisdiction only covers small-scale mining.
The province’s ban on open-pit mining has been considered as the only remaining hurdle to the operation of the Tampakan project.
SMI had declared open-pit mining as the most viable method in extracting the area’s copper-gold resources, touted as the largest in Southeast Asia and among the biggest of its kind in the world.
The governor earlier said the project could proceed with or without him vetoing the lifting of the open-pit mining ban. Tamayo said such prohibition set in the environment code cannot cover large-scale mining as it is regulated by Republic Act No. 7942 or the Philippine Mining Act.
In his letter to De Jesus, Tamayo prayed that the provincial board will no longer override his veto and instead allow the next set of provincial legislators to tackle the matter, noting also that the provincial board is already on recess.
Tamayo is himself returning to the capitol having been reelected into office in the May 9 elections.
Cannot override
But if the provincial legislators decide to hold a session to consider an override, observers said the proponents might no longer have the numbers. A veto override will require 10 votes. Of the 10 who approved the measure on May 16, two have changed their stand.
Board members Grace Achurra, Alyssa Fale, Jinky Avance, Ellen Grace Subere-Albios and Ester Catorce have manifested their “final objection” to the lifting of the open-pit mining ban.
Achurra and Fale, who were present during the May 16 session, are ex officio board members representing the Philippine Councilors League and Sangguniang Kabataan, respectively.
“It was a mistake that I just kept silent that time,” Fale said.
Catorce, who is ending her term on June 30 but elected to a new term as top Koronadal City councilor, said she remained firm on her stand against open-pit mining and would continue the fight “until the end.”
“This is not yet over … God be with us. God bless South Cotabato,” she said.
Albios, who was also elected councilor of Koronadal, said she was disheartened by the lifting of the open-pit mining ban.
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