Mining operators ‘investing’ in pols

An active defender of the country’s reportedly endangered environment on Friday said mining operators have “invested” in politicians by beefing up their campaign coffers, a  practice aimed at protecting the operators’ interests despite numerous questions about the legality of their continued activities.

Gina Lopez, chairman of ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation Inc. (ALKFI), added that some politicians, in the Surigao provinces, for example, are themselves engaged in mining operations.