LCMC urges government to take a step back on mining policy; Promote development of natural resources instead

September 25, 2018 Headlines

BAGUIO CITY – The Lepanto Consolidated Mining Corporation president and chief executive officer Bryan Yap is urging the government to take a step back in steering mining policy direction.
Government’s mining policy direction needs to go back to promotion from regulation, the LCMC executive emphasized.
LCMC had been mining in Mankayan, Benguet for over 70 years now.
The first function of the State with respect to mineral resources, as stated in the Mining Act, has been forgotten or shelved, Yap said while insisting that “it is the responsibility of the State to promote the rational exploration, development, utilization and conservation through the combined efforts of government and the private sector in order to enhance national growth in a way that effectively safeguards the environment and protects the rights of affected communities.”
From the start of the Aquino administration until (now) the policy direction has obviously shifted from promotion to extreme regulation, he claimed.
While regulation is a given, all rules and regulations are already in place for the regulatory function of the DENR, Yap added.
The LCMC President attributed government’s shift to regulation to the “misperception of government and the public that the mining industry was not paying government its fair share in taxes.” The industry had always maintained that we were paying enough taxes, nonetheless, the TRAIN law effectively doubled the excise taxes on gross revenues of mining companies, whether the mining company is making money or not, Yap argued.
Yap went on to decry against former DENR secretary Gina Lopez for “practically demoniz(ing large scale mines) as destroyers of the environment.”
This is of course false and baseless since all large-scale mining companies are regulated by the MGB, EMB and DENR on a regular basis, the LCMC president stressed.
To top it off, all large-scale mining companies, especially the Chamber of Mines members, have been ISO 14001 certified and have undergone the MICC audit conducted early this year, he added. “These should be proof enough of our compliance with environmental laws.”
He urged government, “now that all audits have been completed, I would suggest that we move once again to actively promote the exploration, development and utilization of the natural resources in our country.”
A policy of promotion, he noted, ”will pave the way to addressing such economic issues as balance of payment deficit, weakening Peso, inflation, underdevelopment of rural areas, and inclusive growth,” he said. ACE ALEGRE / ABN