After bringing tragedy, lahar makes money

THE SAND that buried lives and property during the Mt. Pinatubo disaster years 1991-1997 is now Pampanga’s “white gold.” TONETTE T. OREJAS/INQUIRER CENTRAL LUZON

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO— Lahar, the volcanic material disgorged by Mt. Pinatubo on June 15, 1991, and which erased communities in Pampanga  from the map, has become the province’s biggest revenue source.

“The sand is a gift from nature,” said Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda.

The province has collected at least P1.3 billion in taxes and other fees from quarrying in lahar areas from July 2010 to May 2014. The province collects P150 in sand tax and P200 in administrative fee from every truckload of sand.

The collection from quarrying in the province increased during the term of former Gov. Eddie Panlilio, a Catholic priest, quarry records at the capitol showed.

Panlilio’s administration generated P611.1 million, which was higher than the P394.5 million when quarry collections were handled by the state-owned Natural Resources Development Corp.

The administration of then Gov. Manuel “Lito” Lapid collected P34.6 million from 2002 to 2003, while his successor and son, Gov. Mark Lapid, collected P81.4 million from 2004 to 2007.

Pampanga Rep. Joseller Guiao, as vice governor then, accused the Lapids of committing “graft in plunder proportion” through the collection of taxes and fees at checkpoints in the field, recycling of receipts and use of fake receipts.

The Lapids denied wrongdoing, citing low demand for the low collections or blaming erring checkers.

After suspending the elder Lapid twice for 18 months, the Office of the Ombudsman withdrew the charge for alleged illegal collection against him, exonerating him and enabling him to run for senator.

Former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez did not find probable cause to indict the Lapids for graft in a case filed by Panlilio.

Pineda’s administration inherited the administrative fees amounting to P35.5 million and regulatory fees worth P272.7 million that Panlilio held in a trust fund until the legal conflict was over on Ordinance No. 176. The provincial board withdrew the ordinance that sought to give the whole P300 to town governments.

Pineda said irregularities should not be allowed because these would deprive poor people of government services.

“The sand that buried our villages or killed many of our people should benefit the communities,” she said. Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon