House committee to probe mining royalties

LAGAWE, Ifugao — The House of Representatives committee on National Cultural Communities (NCC) is set to investigate some officers of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) over their alleged involvement in a fund reparations anomaly. The NCIP could be involved in irregularities concerning over P 71 million in royalties due to the Mamanwa tribe in Surigao Del Norte, said Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat, chair of the NCC committee. The amount represents the share of the Mamanwas living in areas that generate revenues from the nickel operations of Taganito Mining Corporation (TMC) in Claver town. In a marathon hearing hosted by Gov. Sol Matugas at the Surigao Provincial Capitol, questions were raised by some congressmen on where the money actually went as the Mamanwas alleged that some unscrupulous officers of the NCIP regional office had pocketed part of the royalty payments using deception and coercion. To uncover irregularities Baguilat, himself an indigenous person and a former governor of Ifugao said that his committee intends to uncover alleged irregularities in the conduct of the free and informed prior consent (FPIC) and the management of the royalty fund which was supposed to benefit the Mamanwa but “instead led to more misery and dissension among the usually peaceful indigenous peoples." Under the Mining Act, mining companies have to secure the FPIC of indigenous peoples in mining sites before getting a license to mine the area while the communities issuing an FPIC are entitled to 1 percent of mining revenues or royalties for the development of infrastructure and better social services for affected communities. “We have to find out where the money went because it rightfully belongs to the Mamanwa in the area, who have to be the first to benefit from their sacrifice in allowing the mining operations to start in the first place," Baguilat explained. The issue should be resolved immediately to prevent unrest and violence that may arise in the area, he added. In the hearing at the provincial capitol, Akbayan party-list Rep. Arlene Bag-ao also reportedly chided the NCIP for allegedly getting part of the funds — that should have gone to the Mamanwa tribe — for the administrative costs of its regional office. Oblivious to indigenous people’s plight NCIP was created to promote and protect the well being of indigenous peoples with respect to their beliefs, customs, institutions, and ancestral domains but it has been accused in the past for supposedly kowtowing to the interests of some mining companies and turning a deaf ear against the plight of affected communities. In Nueva Vizcaya, the Ifugaos in Kasibu’s Didipio village had accused NCIP of muddling issues concerning the prior consent for Australian miner OceanaGold Philippines Inc. GMANews.TV asked OceanaGold’s vice president for communications Chito Gozar to comment on the issue by email, but has not received a response as of this posting. We also tried to get in touch with Ruben Bastero, the NCIP’s regional director for Cagayan Valley but wasn’t able to get though as of this posting. In an interview with GMANews.TV, Tolentino Inlab, chair of environment group Didipio Earth Savers Movement, claimed that during the initial phases of OceanaGold’s entry into the province the NCIP in Region II had told the Ifugaos that they did not have the right to meddle with issue of prior consent as they were migrants from nearby Ifugao province. “Nevertheless, we are still indigenous people and we have been residents of Didipio for many, many years now," Tolentino reasoned. The NCIP was even a signatory to documents required by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for the OceanaGold’s environmental compliance certificate — one of the pre-requisites that allow a company to start its mining operations, Inlab. In a recent resolution borne out of its investigation into alleged human rights violations against the Ifugaos, the Commission on Human Rights required several line agencies including the NCIP to submit reports regarding concrete actions that were taken to respect, protect, and fulfill the rights of the affected community in Didipio. — VS, GMANews.TV