MANKAYAN, Benguet – The Office of the President recently issued a stay order preventing the concerned government agencies from executing the suspension order of the embattled Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (LcMC) after it was able to file its allowable appeal to the Place on time.
In his letter dated April 7, 2017 to Atty. Vladimir B. Bumatay, Atty. Badar E. Salendab and Atty. Marvin Lester N. De Paz, all of the LCMC legal department, Acting Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Ryan Alvin R. Acosta cinfirmed that in view of the timely filing of the appeal of LcMC to the earlier contested suspension order, the said controversial order is deemed automatically stayed until otherwise ordered by the Office of the President pursuant to Section 9 of Administrative Order No. 22.
Palace records show that LCMC filed its notice of appeal before the office of the President on 14 February 2017 and its appeal memorandum on March 15, 2017 and the company represented that it received the assailed suspension order on February 14, 2017.
Section 9 of AO 22, series of 2011 prescribed the rules and regulations governing appeals to the Office of the President and provides that the execution of the decision or resolution or order appealed from is stayed upon the filing of the notice of appeal within the period. However, in all cases, at anytime during the pendency of the appeal, the Office of the President may direct or stay the execution of the assailed decision or resolution or order appealed from such terms and conditions as it may deem just and reasonable.
Earlier, LCMC wrote the Office of the President on March 23, 2017 requesting its confirmation on the stay effect of the company’s appeal filed in connection with the suspension order dated February 8, 2017 issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
The assailed order suspended LCMC’s operation after it reportedly failed in the mine audit conducted by the DENr on the operation of large-scale mining companies operating in the different parts of the country.
Engr. Thomas Consolacion, LCMC resident manager, said the company was elated upon receipt of the stay order from the Office of the President, saying that it had been business as usual since the issue on the controversial suspension order cropped up several months ago.
The LcMC official admitted that the company’s stocks drastically dropped since the suspension order was issued but it was able to stabilize over the past several weeks following the continuous mining operations after the company was able to file its notice of appeal on time.
Consolacion claimed the company’s losses reached over P1.8 billion in the investments of shareholders aside from other losses incurred due to the anxiety among potential investors caused by the sudden issuance of the suspension order which was branded as without solid basis and cannot stand legal grounds.
He added the company will continue to work out the eventual lifting of the controversial suspension order to help bring back the confidence of investors to the company and its operations.
By HENT
