Militant Group Refutes MEDCO Statement On Mining Industry

DAVAO CITY – The militant party list group, Anakpawis, on Friday refuted the Mindanao Economic Development Council's (MEDCO) that the infusion of foreign funding in the local mining industry would boost Mindanao’s economy.

Editha Duterte, the group’s spokesperson, explained that MEDCO's “two-pill solution” will solely benefit foreign capitalists while the natural resources and labor force would bleed dry.

"Anakpawis Party-list and all its member organizations and alliances have been unrelentingly campaigning for years already about the adverse consequences of selling out our abundant resources to foreign direct investments."

"This comes as a surprise to us because it is essentially contradictory to their statement regarding NEDA Secy. Alfonso Neri's bid to partner Mindanao’s economy to 'big brother' economies," Duterte said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.

MEDCO earlier this month debunked Neri's opinion, saying that Mindanao's economy is unequipped to contend with rich countries' economies. "MEDCO was short in pointing out that we should strengthen our own economy instead of allowing foreign companies to exploit our resources."

Duterte said that foreign direct investments are eating up local economy because the small and medium businesses can never compete with the capital funding and technology of transnational companies.

"How many of our small-scale mining industries have closed down due to the aggression of foreign mining companies?" she asked.

"Instead of helping our home-grown economy, we kill it by letting foreigners exploit our natural resources. Worse, these foreign industries are afforded with onerous tax holidays and meager to no tariffs while our local businessmen are wrung out with stringent tax obligations. What have the foreign mining companies given to Mindanaoan's in the past decades?"

"These companies have dislocated Filipinos from their lands and extracted them from their livelihood. In Southern Mindanao alone, seven areas have been direly affected by the forceful entry of these foreign mining industries to date. In fact, transnational companies are one of the most repressive and anti-worker capitalists in the region." Duterte said.