By Nanette Guadalquiver
BACOLOD CITY – A Chinese national and eight other individuals have been arrested for their alleged involvement in illegal mining activities in Barangay Bacuyangan, Hinoba-an in Negros Occidental, a police report on Saturday showed.
The suspects’ arrest on Feb. 26 was part of the intensified Oplan Kalikasan law enforcement operation jointly conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Led by the provincial office of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), together with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) – Negros Island Region (NIR), the operation resulted in the confiscation of various mining equipment, such as two backhoe trucks, three 10-wheeler dump trucks, vibrating screen machine, and automatic generator set control panel, estimated to be worth PHP17.5 million.
A report of the PNP-CIDG identified the Chinese national as “Xiong” while the eight others had the names “Bert,” “Joey,” “Chris,” “Rey,” “Leo,” “Randy,” “Dante,” and “Egay.”
Two of them were listed as residents of Hinoba-an, while the rest are from Masbate, Surigao del Sur, Surigao del Norte, Bukidnon, Zamboanga Sibugay, and Davao Oriental, based on a separate report from the regional police.
Mayor Daph Anthony Reliquias, in a news release, acknowledged the development as he confirmed that the municipal government itself initiated an investigation after receiving a letter-complaint from a group of concerned farmers regarding the reported illegal mining activities.
He said that after the initial findings were confirmed, they referred the matter to the Provincial Environment Management Office and coordinated with national regulatory and law enforcement agencies, including the DENR and MGB, for joint inspection and technical evaluation.
Reliquias said the “coordinated efforts, carried out in accordance with established legal procedures, culminated in the law enforcement operation conducted by the concerned authorities.”
“I am firmly against illegal mining. Any extraction of our natural resources without lawful permits, regulatory compliance, and environmental safeguards is unacceptable. The rule of law must prevail,” he added.
In its report, the PNP-CIDG said the suspects did not possess the necessary mining rights, permits, or agreements from the DENR-MGB and other proper authorities.
They will be charged before the National Prosecution Service with violation of Sections 102 (illegal exploration) and 103 (theft of minerals) of Republic Act (RA) 7942, or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, in relation to Section 3 (c) of RA 7076, or the People’s Small-Scale Mining Act of 1991. (PNA)
