SURIGAO del Sur Rep. Prospero Pichay Jr. is facing a graft and grave misconduct complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman for conspiracy to illegally mine, transport and sell nickel ores from ancestral domains.
Datu James Biol and Datu Renante Baklas of the Manobo and Mamanwa tribes, respectively, also included in the complaint Pichay’s mining partner Cesar Detera, former Mines and Geosciences Bureau director Leo Jasareno, MGB assistant director Leo Uykieng, MGB Caraga regional director Alilio Ensomo, Ador Patino of MGB Surigao City, Fe Ligtas, Teofranco Mallari, Lolita Bolayog, Allan Plaza and Jose Salve Cabiling.
The charges arose when Pichay and the other accused were alleged to have gained control of the Claver Mineral Development Corp. in the ancestral lands in Barangay Cagdianao in Claver.
The mining firm allegedly evicted the indigenous peoples of the Mamanwa tribe, who were reportedly “physically dragged out” from their ancestral lands after a lower court ruled in favor of company in a case filed against the mining operations in Barangay Cagdianao.
Mamanwas were “physically dragged out” from their ancestral land on Feb. 11, 2016. Rio Araja
“Respondent Pichay was mining at the site without our consent, and/or Free and Prior Informed Consent considering that the previous FPIC has already been void ab initio at no point in time did the Mamanwa Tribe consented and allowed respondent Pichay from the site,” the complaint read.
After taking over the ancestral domain, Pichay allegedly used his power as a lawmaker to ship out illegally extracted minerals from the site by claiming his company needs to remove hazardous minerals.
Pichay was able to mine and sell nickel ores from the firm with a value of $1.8 million.
“Obviously, respondent Pichay could not have successfully committed the foregoing criminal acts which continues and persists up to the present were it not for the active participation of all the respondents from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau,” the complaint stated.