‘Systemic exclusion’ of LGUs hit in Senate probe on Dupax mining exploration

Legal and policy advocacy group Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC) today said the anomalous issuance of an exploration permit to British firm Woggle Corporation in Dupax del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya reflects a broader, systemic pattern of violations of the people’s right to prior consultations through local governments.

In a position paper presented to the Senate Committees on Local Government and on Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, LRC pointed out that the LGU bypass by Woggle mirrors the earlier case of local autonomy violations in the Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) renewal of mining firm OceanaGold in the neighboring town of Kasibu.

“In Nueva Vizcaya, national agencies have erroneously treated prior consultation requirements as mere formalities. By granting exploration rights to Woggle and renewing FTAA No. 001 of OceanaGold despite active local opposition, the national government has excluded the communities that bear the direct brunt of mining’s impact on health, water security, agriculture, and livelihood,” said Atty. Ryan Roset, LRC Senior Legal Fellow.  

The Center pointed out that the Local Government Code requires the national government to conduct consultations with different stakeholders before the implementation of an environmentally-critical project, with Sections 26 and 27 clearly outlining these terms for consultation and consent. Section 23 of the implementing rules of the Philippine Mining Act recognizes this mandatory requisite, directing exploration permittees to comply with the required consultation with the Sanggunian concerned.

LRC noted that opposition to the exploration activities has been formally expressed across multiple levels of local government, including resolutions from the Provincial Board of Nueva Vizcaya, Municipal Council of Dupax del Norte, and several barangays in the municipality, citing lack of consultation and procedural violations. The same was also done in the issuance of a renewal addendum for OceanaGold in 2021, and the petition against it is in fact currently now in the Supreme Court. 

The province of Nueva Vizcaya is widely regarded as the “Watershed Haven of the North,” serving as the primary source of the Magat and Cagayan river systems that sustain agricultural landscapes across the Cagayan Valley. 

“Any mining activities that threaten these headwaters pose risks that extend far beyond the province, thus, decisions affecting the province's watersheds must strictly comply with legal safeguards that uphold local autonomy and community participation,” explained Atty. Roset.

The Center noted that consultation and prior approval by the LGU for environmentally-critical projects must always be exercised in the context of its statutory duty to protect the environment and the fundamental right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology. 

In the recent dispersal of the barricade mounted by citizens against the exploration activities, the blockade was seen as an assertion of this nexus of rights, which are also linked to their broader constitutional right to effective and reasonable participation at all levels of social, political, and economic decision-making under Article XIII, Section 16, and their right to freedom of speech, expression, and to peaceably assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances under Article III, Section 4.

“Ultimately, the people of Nueva Vizcaya must be treated not as obstacles to development, but as the primary stewards of their territory. As the General Welfare Clause vests in LGUs both the power and duty to ensure the well-being of their constituents, we call for the faithful compliance with the statutory and constitutional requirements that safeguard communities and the national patrimony,” Atty. Roset ended.###