President Duterte’s strong statement against irresponsible mining, environmental destruction and climate change during his second State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday drew various reactions, with environmental groups welcoming his policy pronouncements, while erstwhile supporters and admirers are now yawning over what they call “hollow promises” and “lip service”.
Duterte, who spent a good portion of his Sona assailing irresponsible mining, wants to promote downstream processing of minerals instead of merely exporting ores to other countries.
The Philippines is currently the largest producer and exporter of nickel, with China being the single major buyer. It is also a major producer of gold and copper ore, but most are shipped out of the country.
There are only two processing plants for nickel, and two for gold in the Philippines. For downstream processing, mining experts say there is a need to ensure a steady power supply, something the Philippines is lacking.
Mining investors are currently on a wait-and-see attitude because of the erratic mining policy of the past administrations, coupled with the strong opposition waged by anti-mining groups.
In his his Sona, the President also singled out the “measly” P70-billion annual tax the government gets from mining operations, which cause massive environmental damage.
He then vowed to “tax to death” irresponsible mining companies if they will not shape up, citing mining companies’ huge profit as against the measly tax they pay at the expense of the environment and mining-affected communities.
“We share the President’s frustration against illegal-mining practices and support his desire for mining companies to be responsible in paying taxes as stewards of the environment,” Ronald Recidoro, vice president for policy and legal of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines, said in a text message to reporters.
Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), for its part, said it fully supports Dutere’s push for a new mining law. The first critical step, the group said, is for Duterte to enforce the closure, suspension and mining contracts’ cancellation orders issued by former Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez.
“We expect President Duterte to issue clear instructions to the DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources] to enforce the closure and suspension orders against 28 mining companies issued by former DENR Secretary Regina Lopez,” Jaybee Garganera, national coordinator of ATM, told the BusinessMirror.
The group supports the passage of the Alternative Minerals Management bill in lieu of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995.
Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE), however, was not as excited in issuing its reaction to Duterte’s pronouncements, describing it as “the same old lip service on mining”, “lacking in substance” and the same “hollow promises he ranted about in his first Sona”.
“The same old rhetoric of holding large-scale mining companies accountable is belied by Duterte’s replacement of then-Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez with a pro-mining ex-general, Roy Cimatu,” Kalikasan-PNE national coordinator Clemente Bautista said.
Like ATM, Kalikasan said the President should “walk the talk” by taking large-scale foreign mining companies to task by upholding the mining closure, suspension and agreement cancellation orders issued by Lopez.
“These orders have been stuck in the Office of the President, and it only needs the political will of someone who is honestly against the big foreign mines,” Bautista said.
“On his proposal for a new mining policy, it must be emphasized that Duterte’s idea of just imposing a new mining-tax policy will never be enough to solve the deep-seated problems of the liberalized mining industry. We demand Duterte to immediately scrap the Mining Act of 1995 by passing House Bill 2715 or the People’s Mining bill for no less than the full overhaul of our national mining policy,” the group said.
The People’s Mining bill proposes the implementation of a National Industrialization Program for the mining industry, which is precisely what Duterte said he envisioned for the strategic long-term utilization of mineral resources, Kalikasan-PNE said.
The group further proposes stricter environmental, socioeconomic, and labor regulations, including clear-cut provisions for the mandatory cleanup and rehabilitation of mining-affected ecosystem and communities that the President wants to impose on the big mining companies.