New Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu is set to prioritize mining issues as he steps into his new post.
“Yun muna kasi yun ang controversial (that will be first because that is controversial),” Cimatu said in an interview.
He intends to conduct inspections of mining companies that have been known to violate environmental laws.
“Titingnan ko yung mga ginalaw. Yung mga destructive, puntahan ko yan (I will see those that were used, those that were destructive. I will go there),” he said.
Cimatu says, now is only the time that he will tour mining sites.
As a former military official, he and his troops avoided entry into mining areas as part of his policy.
“Bilang sundalo, hindi ako pumapasok sa mga minahan. Ipinagbabawal ko sa mga sundalo ko yan (as a soldier, I did not enter mining sites. I prohibited my soldiers to go into mining sites),” Cimatu explained.
He also promised, “I will do my best in the interest of the Filipino people.”