MANKAYAN, Benguet — The indigenous peoples of Barangays Guinaoang and Bulalacao in Mankayan, Benguet, reacted positively after their mayor issued an executive order stopping Crescent Mining and Development Corporation (CMDC) from conducting any activities.

Mankayan Mayor Cesar Pasiwen, in his executive order (EO), directed CMDC to immediately cease and desist from conducting any mining-related activities within the territorial jurisdiction of Bulalacao, Guinaoang, and surrounding communities in the municipality. The local chief executive stressed that the issues and concerns raised by affected residents and the local government should be addressed and resolved.

The issuance responds to the 22 October request of the Movement of Guinaoang and Bulalacao Association (MGB) for an EO supporting their opposition to CMDC’s entry into their agricultural and ancestral lands. Members of the MGB cited in their request that the Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), which should be properly followed according to law, was violated, and that CMDC’s mining activities pose threats to the environment, their livelihood, and their future. The residents also emphasized that the democratic will of the barangays should be accorded due consideration and priority in municipal decision-making.

The MGB request was accompanied by various petitions from residents opposing CMDC’s mining operations.

The indigenous peoples of the two barangays had set up a barricade on 13 October 2025, protesting the resumption of the company’s operations under a “fraudulent” renewal, supposedly enabled by negligence from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB). CMDC’s 25-year mining permit expired in 2021.

Prior to the issuance of the mayor’s EO, the Sangguniang Bayan (SB) of Mankayan passed a resolution expressing the council’s stance that it shall not take further action or endorsement relative to CMDC’s exploration unless the issues raised by Guinaoang and Bulalacao are resolved.

Pasiwen also disclosed that the municipality’s technical staff, upon plotting coordinates provided by CMDC, found discrepancies in the actual area of the proposed mining activity, requiring further verification and clarification. The mayor noted that the target area for CMDC’s operation is classified as agricultural and residential under the municipal Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP), rendering CMDC’s proposed activities inconsistent with current zoning classifications.

The police, the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO), and barangay officials are directed to strictly implement the EO. Pasiwen issued the directive in the afternoon of 29 October 2025.