Brooke’s Point Vice-Mayor Mary Jean Feliciano had requested the Provincial Board not to endorse the large-scale mining application of Macro Asia despite the municipal council’s approval of its application.
Feliciano, together with other anti-mining advocates of Brooke’s Point, questioned the legality of the municipal resolution endorsing the mining company.
The resolution was approved during the ‘second’ session which was said to be illegal.
Feliciano said that she had already adjourned their May 20 regular session but majority of the councilors called for another session after she left the session hall with Councilor Mary Ann Racuya and the municipal council secretary.
“There were lots of people inside the session hall and outside the municipal building because of a rally. As presiding officer, I have the prerogative to adjourn (the session) when there was chaos or public disorder,” Feliciano explained.
The vice-mayor related that the councilors who held the second session elected Councilor Mark Barroma as temporary presiding officer and ABC Pres. Georjalyn Joy Quiachon as temporary secretary.
The minutes of the session, which reached the Provincial Board, confirmed Quiachon as the secretary.
“Only in Brooke’s Point can we find a member of the council acting as the secretary,” Board Member Vicky de Guzman quipped.
The minutes showed that Feliciano declared a recess but also resumed with the session after a few minutes. However, she pointed that “it was them who prepared the minutes. I was not even a signatory of that.”
“I wonder why they were such in a hurry to approve the endorsement. It’s not like an emergency. It was not even in the agenda,” Feliciano said.
The Board’s Committee on Rules and Laws requested Feliciano to file a formal communication questioning the legality of the session held by some of Brooke’s Point councilors.
De Guzman, a member of the committee, said that they were hoping to come up with a decision on the issue before they leave office on June 30.
“You cannot have two regular sessions in one day. To call for another session is not in the parliamentary procedures,” de Guzman stressed.
Board Member Modesto Rodriguez II, chairman of the committee, also requested Feliciano to furnish the Board with their house rules.
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