Bad spin Unless it is true that there is no longer anyone in charge anymore, as some businessmen say, the authorities should immediately shut down illegal mining activities on Caramoan Island in Camarines Sur. Yes, apparently illegal mining is being conducted in the tourist-friendly eco-haven that is Caramoan, which shot to fame as the location of various foreign editions of the reality contest-show “Survivor.” My informants in Camarines Sur have accused the local police force, working for a former House leader and his family who have controlled politics in the province’s “Partido” district for the longest time, of aiding and abetting illegal mining operations on the island. The rampant illegal mining was reportedly the reason for the killing last March of four men believed to be small-scale miners in the area. By Jojo Robles | Jul. 08, 2014 Ex-Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella, whose Congress seat has been taken over by his son William Felix, has been identified by Gov. Luis Miguel Villafuerte as the godfather of illegal mining in Caramoan. The elder Fuentebella was named by alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles as one of the congressmen who benefited from her lucrative and long-running scheme to steal taxpayers’ allocated for Congress projects. His son, the current congressman, used to head up the all-powerful Partido Development Authority, a state-run corporation that oversees economic development in the district that was created by virtue of Republic Act No. 7820, which was sponsored by his father. PDA was in the original list of government-owned and -controlled corporations that had been identified in House Bill 2867 for abolition by the Aquino administration for being white elephants. Local executives and environmental activists earlier exposed illegal mining activities are being perpetrated by groups allied with Fuentebella and in cahoots with the police in the Caramoan Peninusala, which is a tourism zone that is supposed to be off limits to miners. But when Villafuerte, the current governor, complained to Philippine National Police Director General Alan Purisima and regional police head Chief Supt. Victor Deona, the governor was instead suspended as National Police Commission deputy. There has been no official sanction on Fuentebella, who briefly served as House speaker during the Estrada administration, despite the persistence of reports that he is behind illegal mining operations in the Bicol region’s top tourist destination. Perhaps the police have decided that any illegal mining in Caramoan is being conducted in good faith by people identified with the former speaker.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Jul 2014 23:10:29 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015