Friday, May 23, 2008

Case Filed Against Palawan Mining Board and Engineer Baltazar Camoy

Philippine News Agency - A civil case for breach of agreement has been filed at the Palawan Regional Trial Court (RTC) against the Provincial Mining Regulatory Board (PMRB) and Engr. Baltazar S. Camoy, the geodetic engineer it hired to conduct revalidation of survey and resurvey of the applied small scale mining area of Agapito A. Salido, Jr. of Aramaywan Metals Development Corporation (AMDC).

Specifically, the PMRB and Caimoy are being sued by plaintiff Salido for "breach of agreement" with nullity of report dated March 31, 2008 and injunction with prayer for temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction.

This recent development came following Salido's failure to convince the PMRB to "partially lift" the suspension of his small scale mining operation in Barangay Aramaywan, Narra.

In his first cause of action, Salido said that in an agreement dated March 28, 2008, notarized before lawyer Nesario Awat of Kilusang Sagip Kalikasan (KSK), the services of Caimoy was commissioned by him and the PMRB to conduct a relocation, ground verification and revalidation survey of the area, the technical description of which is shown in Small Scale Mining Permit (SSMP) 47 issued by the Office of the Governor.

The purpose of the agreement, he stated, was to settle once and for all the exact boundaries of his small scale mining area as shown in his permit.

But on the day of the supposed revalidation, ground verification and relocation at the mine site, Caimoy merely conducted an observation of the discovery or observation post and of the mine pit using his instrument that can allegedly determine the global positions or the global positioning system (GPS).

Salido said Caimoy did not conduct an actual relocation, ground verification and revalidation survey because no monument was ever placed on the ground to determine the exact geographical position of the four corners of his approved mining claim under the SSMP 47, all in violation of the stipulations in the agreement dated March 28.

While Caimoy did identify the discovery or observation post and the mine pit of the mining area, he intentionally and with evident bad faith did not identify and establish the geographical position of the four corners and the point of reference on the ground and their deliberate exclusion from his observation through the GPS, creates a confusion as to the true and exact boundaries of plaintiffs' mining claim and makes it appear that the mine pit or the area explored by plaintiff is outside of his claim covered by the permit.

By allegedly conducting mere observation and only of the discovery or observation post and mine pit, Caimoy's work is incomplete and inconclusive. It also breached the agreement in which he was called to perform, not only to do observation but survey, ground verification and relocation of the whole mining area covered by SSMP 47, to the damage and prejudice of Salido.

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