By JONG D. CADION
PAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur (July 14,
2014-MPF News) --- The Subanen Indigenous Communities of Midsalip, Zamboanga
del Sur through their economic arm, Subanen Gataw Taasan Association
Incorporated (SUGATAI), warned and cautioned government officials from closing
their eyes to the violations committed by 168 Ferrum Pacific Mining Corporation
(168 Ferrum), IPs Official said.
SUGATAI Chairman Timuay Carlito Dalangon
said Monday calling the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary
Ramon J.P. Paje for the cancellation of 168 Ferrum Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) No. 267-2008-IX after they had discovered recently that
said documents issued by former DENR Secretary Lito Atienza to 168 Ferrum
following the recommendation to Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) is procured
through fraud and machinations.
Timuay Dalangon said on September 30, 2008,
the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) issued Resolution No. 303,
Series of 2008 approving the issuance of Certification Precondition (CP) for
the MPSA application of 168 Ferrum as APSA 101-IX on the basis of the said CP,
MPSA No. 267-2008-IX was then issued to 168 Ferrum.
However, Timuay Dalangon said thorough and
careful reading of the documents, specifically, the Resolution No. 303, would
show that the CP issued to 168 Ferrum covers only areas located in Bayog,
Zamboanga del Sur, namely: Barangays Datagan, Bantal, Canoayan, Liba, and
Matin-ao, but not Midsalip.
Dalangon added that it is due to the
machinations of 168 Ferrum that two parcels of land were included in MPSA No.
267-2008-IX, namely: a parcel of land in Midsalip which is covered by our EPR,
and a parcel of land covered by EXPA 046 located in Bayog, which had in fact
been canceled by the DENR Secretary. These two parcels are included as if they
were part of their CP, where in fact they were not.
Dalangon said the records would show that
the CP issued to 168 Ferrum which only covers certain barangays in Bayog was
duplicitously used to include areas in Midsalip.
By so doing, 168 Ferrum succeeded in
securing MPSA No. 267-2008-IX over lands within their ancestral domains, said
the tribal leader.
The IPs leader accused 168 Ferrum for
violating the law and the conditions of its grants.
He said the records would also show that
168 Ferrum has not secured the following: a.) FPIC of the IPs in Midsalip, b.)
Certification of Non-Overlap, and c.) Certification Precondition over any
parcels of land located in Midsalip.
He cited section 59 of the IPRA provides:
“Certification Precondition that all departments and other governmental
agencies shall henceforth be strictly enjoined from issuing, renewing, or
granting any concession, license or lease, or entering into any production
sharing agreement, without prior certification from the NCIP that the area
affected does not overlap with any ancestral domain.
Such certification shall only be issued
after a field based investigation is conducted by the Ancestral Domains Office
of the area concerned: Provided, That no certification shall be issued by the
NCIP without the free and prior informed and written consent of ICCs/IPs
concerned: Provided, further, That no department, government agency or
government owned or controlled corporation may issue new concession, license,
lease, or production sharing agreement while there is a pending application for
a CADT: Provided, finally, That the ICCs/IPs shall have the right to stop or
suspend, in accordance with this Act, any project that has not satisfied the
requirement of this consultation process.”
He said the law is very clear that a
Certification that the area does not overlap any certified or claimed ancestral
land/domain issued by National Commission on Indigenous Peoples must be secured
by the applicant, and where the area overlaps any certified or claimed
ancestral domain, the Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) of the concerned
ICCs/IPs must also be obtained. 168 Ferrum has not complied with any of these
requirements over the areas within our ancestral domains in Midsalip.
The aforementioned MPSA granted to 168
Ferrum has denied us of our rights under the law as it is only under “free,
prior, and informed consent” that we can protect ourselves and assert our
rights under the IPRA. “Clearly, the MPSA of 168 Ferrum strikes at our liberty
to exercise our rights to explore, harvest, extract, develop and exploit the
natural resources within our ancestral domains.
This law must be applied strictly and
swiftly to stop the fraudulent acts of 168 Ferrum and to mark out our rights
within our ancestral domains,” said Dalangon.
He also added that under the same
provision, the DENR is strictly enjoined from granting any agreements without
valid FPIC and CP, presumably to ensure that the IPs concerned are protected.
Undeniably, the issuance of MPSA No. 267-2008-IX to 168 Ferrum in violation of
Section 59 of IPRA is illegal and punishable under Section 72, he concluded.
In addition he said, Article 5 of the New
Civil Code also provides: Acts executed against the provisions of mandatory or
prohibitory laws shall be void, except when the law itself authorizes their
validity. He also also explained that under this provision, MPSA No.
267-2008-IX is null and void for being executed in violation to Sec. 59 of the
IPRA requiring valid FPIC, CNO and CP prior to its approval. Being null and
void, the MPSA has no force and effect and must be treated as if no MPSA has
been issued. “The MPSA of 168 Ferrum, if not enjoined, will prohibit two
distinct and specific activities that the law directly grants us, namely: the
right to explore and the right to mine the natural resources within our
ancestral domains.” Said Dalangon.
He commented that the fraud resorted to by
168 Ferrum may have been complicated that it had escaped the attention and
watchful eye of the MGB. Unquestionably, the records of this case and the
documents submitted by 168 Ferrum could reasonably ascertain that 168 Ferrum
committed fraud and violated the law and the conditions of its grants.
The IPs in Midsalip (Zamboanga del Sur)
also recommended to the DENR Officials that the existence of these violations
by 168 Ferrum warrants the cancellation of MPSA No. 267-2008-IX.
NCIP Region-9 Director Timuey Woy Lim P.
Wong in an interview on Friday said denied of that their having issued the said
certification to 168 Ferrum. “I just newly assumed office last month when we
had received the copy of the complained furnished to us by SUGATAI and upon
verification based in our record shows our office did not issue the said
documents to the said mining firm,” Wong explained.
MGB Region-9 Satellite Office on the other
hand refused to give any comment on the issue due to the ongoing investigation
regarding the complained by the IPs in Midsalip.
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