April 2016 - Philippine Supreme Court Decisions/Resolutions
Philippine Supreme Court Jurisprudence
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G.R. No. 209165, April 12, 2016 - LNL ARCHIPELAGO MINERALS, INC., Petitioner, v. AGHAM PARTY LIST (REPRESENTED BY ITS PRESIDENT REP. ANGELO B. PALMONES), Respondent.:
G.R. No. 209165, April 12, 2016 - LNL ARCHIPELAGO MINERALS, INC., Petitioner, v. AGHAM PARTY LIST (REPRESENTED BY ITS PRESIDENT REP. ANGELO B. PALMONES), Respondent.
EN BANC
G.R. No. 209165, April 12, 2016
LNL ARCHIPELAGO MINERALS, INC., Petitioner, v. AGHAM PARTY LIST (REPRESENTED BY ITS PRESIDENT REP. ANGELO B. PALMONES), Respondent.
D E C I S I O N
CARPIO, J.:
This is a petition for review on certiorari1 assailing the Amended Decision dated 13 September 20132 of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. SP No. 00012.
Petitioner LNL Archipelago Minerals, Inc. (LAMI) is the operator of a mining claim located in Sta. Cruz, Zambales. LAMI's mining area is covered by Mineral Production Sharing Agreement3 No. 268-2008-III dated 26 August 2008 by virtue of an Operating Agreement4 dated 5 June 2007 with Filipinas Mining Corporation.
LAMI embarked on a project to build a private, non-commercial port in Brgy. Bolitoc, Sta. Cruz, Zambales. A port is a vital infrastructure to the operations of a mining company to ship out ores and other minerals extracted from the mines and make the venture economically feasible. Brgy. Bolitoc, about 25 kilometers away from the mine site, makes it an ideal location to build a port facility. In the area of Sta. Cruz, Shangfil Mining and Trading Corporation (Shangfil)/A3Una Mining Corporation (A3Una) and DMCI Mining Corporation, have been operating their own ports since 2007.
LAMI secured the following permits and compliance certificates for the port project: (1) Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Environmental Compliance Certificate5 (ECC) R03-1104-182 dated 2 May 2011 covering the development of causeway, stockpile and related facilities on LAMI's property with an area of 18,142 sq.m.; (2) DENR provisional foreshore lease agreement with LAMI;6 (3) Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) Clearance to Develop a Port;7 (4) PPA Permit to Construct a Port;8 (5) PPA Special Permit to Operate a Beaching Facility;9 and (6) Tree Cutting Permit/Certification10 from the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) of the DENR.
The Zambales Alliance, a group of other mining companies operating in Sta. Cruz, Zambales which do not have their own port, namely Eramen Minerals, Inc.; Zambales Diversified Metals Corporation; Zambales Chromite Mining Corporation, Inc.; BenguetCorp Nickel Mines, Inc., supported the port project of LAMI and issued Letters11 of Intent to use the port facilities of LAMI upon completion.
The Bolitoc community - the barangay, its officials and residents -gave several endorsements12 supporting the project. Even the Sangguniang Bayan of Sta. Cruz gave its consent to the construction of the port.13
However, LAMI allegedly encountered problems from the local government of Sta. Cruz, headed by Mayor Luisito E. Marty (Mayor Marty). LAMI stated that Mayor Marty unduly favored some mining companies in the municipality and allegedly refused to issue business and mayor's permits and to receive payment of occupation fees from other mining companies despite the necessary national permits and licenses secured by the other mining companies.
On 24 April 2012, Mayor Marty issued an order14 directing LAMI to refrain from continuing with its clearing works and directed the Sta. Cruz Municipal Police Chief Generico Binan to implement his order. On 26 April 2012, LAMI responded through a letter15 explaining that Mayor Marty's order was illegal and baseless. Chief Binan, together with two of his deputies, went to LAMI's port site to demand that LAMI cease its clearing works. LAMI's supervisor showed Chief Binan all of LAMI's permits. In a Memorandum dated 3 May 2012, Chief Binan made a report to his supervisor, S/Supt. Francisco DB Santiago, Jr. (S/Supt. Santiago), Zambales Police Provincial Director, that there was no leveling of a mountain on the port site. On 6 May 2012, S/Supt. Santiago made a Special Report re: Police Assistance16 to the Philippine National Police (PNP) Regional Director citing the findings of Chief Bi