POWER PLANTS OF HEDCOR SHUT-OFF IN BAKUN, BENGUET

July 5, 2021 Headlines

La Trinidad, Benguet (July 1, 2021)— Private hydro power producer HEDCOR finally shut off its Lon-oy and Labay plants located along the Bakun River Wednesday evening following the cease-and-desist order by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples(NCIP) last week.
Separate contingents of elders and elected officials led by Bakun Mayor Bill Raymundo trooped to the plant sites to enforce the NCIP’s CDO after Bakun town, as an ancestral domain, issued a Certificate of Non- Consent.
National Officers of HEDCOR tried to bid for time through virtual dialogue arguing it needed to get the permission of DOE, which in turn advised the company to continue operating.
Seeing the determination of the contingents who said they will not leave until the plants shut-off, HEDCOR went even without getting a response from the regulating agency DOE.
At some point, the elders walked-out when HEDCOR tried to pep-talk them. “We do not need those words. We are through with those. Its getting late and we need to walk back to town,” said the Bakun mayor.
All three plants shut off between 6:20 to 6:35 PM Wednesday. Bakun earlier, through their IP organization, gave their non-consent and requested NCIP to issue the CDO.
HEDCOR, they claimed, lied to the elders in order not to pay more. It also filed suits against the mayor for refusing to issue business permit. It also sued two barangay captains for not issuing barangay clearances, and the municipal treasurer for not accepting payment from HEDCOR.
Rocky Ngalob, NCIP-Cordillera information officer said, “the ball is now with other agencies,” while sharing the accolade with NCIP-CAR, “who diligently served and stood by with the IPs of Bakun”.
He further explained that the CDO was anchored on the Resolution of Non Consent from the IPs of Bakun which prompted the non issuance of a Certificate Precondition (CP).
The non-issuance of the CP would supposedly prompt other agencies for the cancellation of other permits and/or instruments granted to Hedcor not limited to: water permit, service contracts, land use agreements etc, Ngalob said.
This, however “is without prejudice to Hedcor should they chose to re-apply for the issuance of CP after allowable period of 6 months.”
Artemio A. Dumlao/ABN