BATARAZA, Palawan — Pala’wan tribal chieftains in this town are demanding the closure of a state-of-the-art lime milk manufacturing plant for allegedly failing to pay royalty shares and for illegal operation due to the absence of certification precondition (CP) issued by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
At a media conference Monday at the Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation (RTNMC), 27 Pala’wan tribal leaders demanded the NCIP to close down the operation of Unichamp Mineral Philippines Inc. (Unichamp) lime milk processing plant in Barangay Rio Tuba, Bataraza, for not paying more than PHP3 million in royalty shares, PHP5 million in penalty interest and securing the precondition certificate.
The CP under NCIP Administrative Order No. 3 refers to the certificate issued by the NCIP, signed by its chairperson, attesting to the grant of Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) by the concerned indigenous cultural communities (ICCs) or indigenous peoples (IPs).
Artolin Edlap, one of the tribal chieftains and the indigenous peoples’ mandatory representative (IPMR) in the Barangay Council of Rio Tuba, said despite numerous dialogues with Unichamp, it still refused to pay three years-worth of royalty shares.
“Sobra na ang ginagawa nila sa amin, tatlong taon na mahigit silang di nagbabayad ng royalty share at isa pa, wala silang CP galing sa NCIP dapat isara sila dahil iligal ang operasyon (What they are doing to us is too much, they have not paid our royalty shares for more than three years, and they do not have CP from the NCIP, so they should stop operations),” Edlap said.
He said since the last dialogue on February 15, they have not heard from Unichamp plant manager Alvin Trazona, and from its president, Rommel Ibuna.
In the memorandum of agreement (MOA), which they said they signed with Unichamp on October 22, 2011, it is obligated to release their royalty shares and Social Development and Management Programs (SDMP) funds through the Indigenous Peoples Development Office (IPDO) in Bataraza.
“Ang royalty ay nagkakahalaga ng PHP1,000,000 bawat taon at para sa 2015, ang Unichamp ay may balanse ng PHP217,195.52. Walang bayad na natanggap para sa 2016, 2017, at 2018 (The royalty share is worth PHP1,000,000 per year and for 2015, Unichamp already has unpaid balance of PHH217,195.52. Since then, they have not paid for 2016, 2017, and 2018),” he said.
He said Unichamp should cease and desist from operating because of two resolutions they passed withdrawing their previous consent to establish the operation of the lime milk manufacturing facility and ordering it to stop operations.
Dadong Corio, another IP chieftain, said Unichamp’s failure to pay royalty shares has shamed their culture and traditions and has affected the scholarship grants for their children, a carabao purchasing plan for ICC farmers, and other social development projects.
They had decided a PHP5-million penalty, an amount not even enough remuneration for the embarrassment they feel having represented the other indigenous peoples in Rio Tuba.
“Sa amin kapag nagkasala ang isang tao, bago siya magbigay ng dapat niyang ibigay, mumultahan muna namin siya bago siya makipag-usap sa aming mga leader. Hanggang sa huli ilalaban namin ito (In our tradition, a person who commits a mistake must be fined first before he/she can speak to our leaders. Until the end, we will fight for this),” he said to explain how the penalty came up.
Meanwhile, Benguet lawyer Alfonso Aroco, who is helping the Pala’wan chieftains, said they will also bring Unichamp to court if it still fails to settle the over PHP7 in royalty shares and penalties.
“The Supreme Court has a decision about filing cases that says if you want to sue companies like Unichamp, you have to file in the regular court. What we will file is about the violation of the rights of the IPs and then we will add cases which I will not say yet,” he said.
The USD22-million Unichamp, said to be a leading lime milk manufacturer in Asia, has gained a 15-year contract to supply Coral Bay Nickel Corp., a subsidiary of Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd. of Japan, which operates a nickel mine in Rio Tuba.
The PNA waited for the call of Unichamp plant manager Trazona to comment but as of this posting, no reply has been made. (Celeste Anna Formoso/PNA)
