BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO
Hedcor Inc., a leading run-of-river hydropower company in the Philippines, has appealed to a tribe group in Bakun town in Benguet to support the company in processing their certification precondition for the renewal of the operation of power plants in their locality.
In a statement, Hedcor said it would like to continue to be Bakun’s partner for progress over the long term and appealed to Bakun Indigenous Tribe Organization (BITO) leaders for support so it can commence the benefit-sharing as stipulated in its memorandum of agreement (MoA).
Hedcor noted it has been in the community for 30 years and was saddened by the turn of events when BITO issued a resolution of nonconsent to operate for their plants in Bakun town.
The company explained it went through a process that is time-tested and it involves securing the consent of the entire indigenous community in Bakun.
“From 2017, we, together with the BITO, and guided by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, have gone through a successful free prior and informed consent process, which resulted in the issuance of the certificate of consent, and consequently, a signed FPIC MoA in October 2019,” the company said.
However, Hedcor admitted the BITO resolution was triggered by the petition for certiorari that it had to file with the court to protect its plants from being unduly shut down.
“We hope that the community understands that the company has been left with no choice but to file the petition, given the threat to shut down our operations by March 31, 2021, issued by the municipality while negotiations are still ongoing for a new voluntary share MoA with the local government unit of Bakun,” the company said.
Hedcor also reiterated its firm position that the negotiations for a new commercial MoA for additional shares are not a requirement for a business permit, and this has been supported in the opinions issued by the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
“In the spirit of fairness, we find that a free and reasonable commercial negotiation is not possible with the undue threat to our operations brought about by the withholding of our business permit,” it said.
“We hope that the Bakun LGU (local government unit) will grant the renewal of our business permit to continue our operation and sustain our relationship with the best interest of the entire Bakun community during this pandemic,” the company said.
Hedcor said it remains committed to supporting the Bakun community the same way it is providing its other host communities across the country with benefits that are reasonable and sustainable.