THE VIEW FROM RIZAL
Dr. Jun Ynares
“What do you wish the new administration would give priority to?”
This is the question I have been getting from friends and colleagues in the local government sector. In a few days, we will be sworn into office as the next mayor of Antipolo City. We will assume office on the very same day that incoming President Bongbong Marcos (PBBM) officially becomes the new chief executive of the land.
With the passing of the baton of leadership to the next Chief Executive, many are now wondering what the new administration’s priorities should be.
We believe that PBBM’s priority will be the economy. The economy has been run aground by the unrelenting huge increases in the price of fuel and the inflation rate has been on an upward climb. PBBM will have to help our countrymen to cope and to survive these difficult times, to provide for their families’ basic needs and to rebuild their enterprise and lives.
At some point, we hope our new President would turn his attention to our shared concern for the protection of Mother Nature.
In particular, we hope that PBBM would review current policies of the national government regarding the issuances of permits covering the various operations done by private entities which exploit the wealth of natural resources located within the jurisdiction of local government. These activities include mining, quarrying, rock-crushing and the like.
As he does so, we hope that PBBM would see the importance of giving local governments a bigger say in the issuances of such permits. We look forward to real empowerment of local governments and communities to protect these resources.
At present, LGUs have a token role in the issuances of these permits.
Respected veteran columnist Jarius Bondoc, in his column in the Philippine Star last June 15, 2022, titled “Scientists, tribesmen, notables, join outcry against quarries,” called attention to this sad situation.
Citing a study by the National Museum, Mr. Bondoc echoed the call of several organizations against “rock-crushing in the mountaintops of Rizal that ruin protected areas and ancestral lands.”
He reiterated the call of Remontado-Dumagat community leaders living in Antipolo to “preserve the peak, their sacred shrine”, referring to that of Mount Susong Dalaga.
We laud Mr. Bondoc for lending his powerful voice to this clamor.
The fact is Rizal Provincial Governor Rebecca Ynares has repeatedly tried to do exactly that – stop the quarrying operations in all areas within the jurisdiction of Rizal Province.
The Antipolo LGU made a similar, bolder move. It issued an ordinance banning all mining, quarrying and rock-crushing operations within its territory. It deployed its local police forces to enforce the ordinance. The affected operators went to court to sue the city.
However, in November of 2021, Branch 97 of the Regional Trial Court (Fourth Judicial Region) ruled against a move by the local government of Antipolo to ban all mining, quarrying and related activities within the jurisdiction of the city.
In its decision, the court ruled that the ordinance passed by the Antipolo City Council and implemented by the office of the City Mayor, the city’s permits and licensing office, and the Philippine National Police stopping all said operations were “unconstitutional” and therefore “null and void.”
The court underscored that the Antipolo City ordinance was “ultra vires” – beyond the scope of its powers. It ruled that the said ordinance “failed to meet the substantive requirements” which include not contravening the constitution and not prohibiting but merely regulating trade.
The court explained that the permits given by the national government to the entities which sued the city “are solemn contracts between the State and the petitioners” and that they are “warranted under the constitution and the Mining Act” passed by the national legislature. It emphasized that it is the State which is the “true owner” of the mineral resources tapped and mined by the petitioners.
The court concluded that the Antipolo City ordinance banning mining, quarrying and related activities is unconstitutional and therefore “null and void.”
Prior to the court ruling, several national government agencies had already warned both Rizal and Antipolo that they cannot ban these activities.
They pointed out that the city and the province were the sources of these materials closest to the metropolis. If the entities providing these materials coming from the mountains of Rizal and Antipolo were to cease operations, builders in Metro Manila may have to source their requirement from more distant provinces thereby causing spikes in construction costs.
It may interest Mr. Bondoc to note that, as things stand today, local governments are not empowered to stop these activities. We hope he can lend the might of his influential pen to get PBBM’s attention to this unfortunate situation.
(For feedback, please email it to [email protected] or send it to Block 6 Lot 10 Sta. Barbara 1 cor. Bradley St., Mission Hills Subd., Brgy. San Roque, Antipolo City, Rizal.)