A screengrab from AFPTV aerial video footage taken on Wednesday, February 7, 2024, shows the extent of Tuesday night’s landslide in Maco, Davao de Oro province. (File photo by Agence France-Presse)
MANILA, Philippines — A resolution seeking to investigate the Davao de Oro landslide that killed 54 people has been filed before the House of Representatives.
House Assistant Minority Leader Arlene Brosas, a Gabriela party-list representative, filed House Resolution 1587 on Tuesday, urging the lower chamber’s committee on natural resources to investigate the landslide that hit Barangay Masara in Maco town last February 6.
Apex Mining Corp., which is at the center of the controversy following the landslide, has maintained that the incident happened at a transport terminal for its employees outside its mining area. Among the victims of the tragedy were the company’s employees operating large-scale mining in Davao de Oro.
“Environmental advocates oppose large-scale and open pit mining operations due to their destructive, lasting impact on our communities,” Brosas said in a statement.
READ: Death toll in Davao de Oro landslide climbs to 54
“What happened in Davao is a living example of how badly it affects communities, which has resulted in the death of so many workers and residents,” she added.
READ: Davao de Oro town landslide due to natural causes, says MGB exec
Brosas likewise urged the national government to suspend all large-scale mining operations in the country, claiming that mining has little to no contribution to employment.
“Mining has delivered paltry gains for the past years and has no significant contribution even to employment. Only big businessmen make money while the people bear the effects of this on the community and the environment,” Brosas said.
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“The government must, at the very least, suspend, if not entirely ban, all large-scale mining operations in the country. With the monsoon season nearly upon us, it is imperative that we take action to prevent incidents like the one in Davao de Oro from occurring in other areas,” she added.
According to Brosas, mining activities nationwide increased due to then-President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order (EO) No. 130, which lifted the nine-year ban on new mining agreements.
Among the mining companies allowed to operate in Mindanao under the EO 30 was Apex Mining, she said.