Photo: South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. Photo from the South Cotabato provincial government Facebook page
South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. has vetoed the amended Environment Code Ordinance that sought to lift the open-pit mining ban in the province.
In a press conference Friday, Tamayo said he was quite surprised that the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) "quickly" approved the amendments to the ordinance during a session on May 16.
He was out of the country when a majority of the SP members passed the amended ordinance.
“I don’t know the reason behind the quick approval; I am returning the ordinance to the SP,” Tamayo said.
Since the council is in recess, the governor said the matter would be discussed by the next set of provincial board members.
In his veto, Tamayo invoked Section 55 of the Local Government Code (Republic Act 7160), describing the amendment as “prejudicial to the public welfare and inimical to the overall interest of South Cotabateños.”
“I could not find any compelling reason why the SP would amend a decade-old ordinance that ably and effectively protect the people of South Cotabato from the ill-effects of the wanton destruction of our God-given resources,” he said.
Tamayo was quick to add though that the environment code has nothing to do with the operation of Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI) in Tampakan town.
“The ordinance only regulates mining operations within the authority of the local government unit like small-scale mining,” he said.
Ordinance 04, series of 2010, entitled “An Ordinance Providing for the Environment Code of the Province of South Cotabato”, was passed on June 9, 2010.
In 2015, the SP filed a resolution affirming the open-pit mining ban in the province.
Pro-mining groups earlier said the open-pit mining ban in South Cotabato hampered the development of the copper and gold mine project in Tampakan, touted as the largest in Southeast Asia.
Anti-mining groups, however, said the project endangered not only the environment but also the lives of residents.
SMI has been pursuing the Tampakan gold project for more than a decade. By Roel Osano
Article courtesy of the Philippine News Agency
