BAYAN MUNA Rep. Neri Colmenares yesterday expressed shock at the admission of the Philippine Army and the Mayor of Kiblawan, Davao del Sur that SMI-Xstrata is giving the AFP between P170,000 to P850,000 a month for deploying Army and CAFGU elements in areas with opposition to SMI mining.
The admission was made by Col. Flores, head of the 39th IB of the Philippine Army and Kiblawan Mayor Marivic Diamante during the Congressional hearing held in Koronadal yesterday on the killing of anti-mining activist Juvy Capion and her two sons in Kiblawan last year.
“Now the cat is out of the bag. This explains why the Army and its CAFGUs are so obsessed with eliminating opposition to mining because they will lose millions if SMI-Xstrata operations stop,” explained Rep. Colmenares.
“Gen. Flores revealed during our questioning that sixty CAFGUs receive P2,500.00 each or P150,000.00 every month and regular gasoline allowance from a SMI-Xstrata.
Mayor Diamante, who is rabidly supporting SMI mining without realizing the dire implications of her admission, revealed that SMI actually allocates P7,500.00 each to 12 CAFGUs for a total of P850,000.00 every month. This is practically sicking the AFP to go after anti-mining activists. SMI-Xstrata officials is essentially a conspirator in the killing of Capion.”
The Congressional hearing in Koronadal was conducted by the Committee on Cultural Communities headed by Rep. Teddy Baguilat due to a resolution filed by Rep. Luz Ilagan to find out if the Army purposely committed the massacre or not.
“The first issue is whether SMI funding of the Army is legal or constitutes a form of bribery on public officials. Congress is allocating a budget for the CAFGUs each year, so why is there a need to get funds from private companies doing business in the area. Because of the discrepancy in the amount being given and the number of CAFGUs being supported by SMI, the COA should look into how these funds dispensed,” said Colmenares.
“The local LGUs should not receive any monetary consideration from SMI considering that it has a hand in the granting of the permit or approval of SMI’s mining operations. This could constitute bribery and graft under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices law. Malacanang should order the AFP and the LGUs to immdiately cease accepting funds from SMI and other mining firms in the area.”