Mining firms’ brazen attempt to fool the public

THE Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) and the OceanaGold deliberately misled the public when they claimed to the media that there are no mines in the 10 poorest provinces of the country. In the wake of Environment Secretary Regina Lopez’s statement sometime in the middle of last year that mining causes poverty, COMP executive vice president Nelia Halcon issued a press release containing the lie (“Mining lobby hits Lopez poverty remark,” July 14, 2016). Last month, Chito Gozar, senior vice president for communications and external affairs of the OceanaGold, repeated the falsehood.

A belated check with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) directory of operating mines online (https://www.mgb.gov.ph/2015-05-13-01-44-56/mining-projects-directory, https://www.mgb.gov.ph/attachments/article/50/MAR_2017_MPSA_2A.pdf) showed that two of the 10 poorest provinces host a mine each. Siguijor, listed as No. 9, is the location of Lazi Bay Resources Development, Inc. (limestone). The Philsaga Mining Corporation (gold and silver) operates in Agusan del Sur, the No. 10 poorest province. In the case of Philsaga Mining Corporation, it is hard to believe that Halcon and Gozar are not aware of its existence and location because the company is a regular member of the COMP and the group only has 25 regular members. OceanaGold is also a member of the COMP.