68 giving back
giving back 69
01 • Local top officials led by Misamis Oriental Governor Oscar Moreno receive relief goods from PMSEA President Engr. Louie Sarmiento and PMSEA Director Engr. Roger Casido. A total of P2 million worth of relief goods was distributed by PMSEA and sponsors SMI, CoreMin2, Atlas, Lepanto, DMCI, Philippine Mining Business Club, SMEP to the victims of typhoon Sendong in CDO and Iligan. 02 • PMSEA is the only volunteer organization from Manila that reached out as far as Limunsudan Proper, Brgy. Rongoron, a war torn area between the border or Bukidnon and Lanao del Norte. Around 160 families and 3,000 dependents received medical treatment and free medicines during the mission.
The vision of the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association (PMSEA) when we presented the Pusong Minero video documentary is to show the heroic acts of the miners and the true character of the majority of people who work in the industry... 01
liters capacity) and enlisting local volunteers. A local NGO, the Fraternal Order of the Philippine Eagles provided trucks to transport the Pusong Minero bottled water to remote communities in Iligan to expand the number of beneficiaries that have access to clean drinking water. The Land Rover Club of the Philippines also set up the Trident water purifier inside the Iligan Cement Plant to augment our water production capabilities and this unit will operate until the end of February 2012. Inspired by the initial pledges and volunteers from Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI) and the Coalition for Responsible Mining in Mindanao (CORE-Min2), PMSEA embarked on relief goods distribution for the first time. We distributed more than two million pesos worth of relief goods and services to the
victims in CDO and Iligan. Our relief goods were also purchased with a heart. We conducted a needs assessment of our target areas and with the help of local partners like Iligan Lights, we purchased and distributed these relief goods to communities even in far flung barangays. We responded to the needs of the communities based on the resources that we have. On December 27, we followed Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary Dinky Soliman to Brgy. Mandulog in Iligan. We noticed that the 245 families living in the evacuation area in Brgy. Mandulog were sharing blankets and mats. The following day, we delivered 245 sets of these items to the evacuees in Mandulog. We had 7,000 blankets and 3,000 sleeping mats and we made sure that these items reached the evacuees in
CDO and Iligan immediately. Brgy. Mandulog is also the first recipient of the used tarpaulins donated by the Phil. Franchise Association to shelter the survivors from the cold winds and the rains. When the Land Rover Club of the Philippines (LRCP) joined the PMSEA Pusong Minero Team, we found enough resources to embark to conduct medical missions in the hinterlands with medicines donated by Angel Brigade, LRCP, Maria Reyna Xavier University Hospital, Phil. Institute of Supply Management (PISM), etc. Our first medical mission was during the Feast of Sto. Nino on January 15 at Our Lady of Fatima Parish, benefitting more than 500 residents of Brgys. Digkilaan, Mainit and Rogongon, Iligan City. When we started the Iligan mission on January 10, there were just four volunteers from Manila.
Five days after in Digkilaan, we had more than 80 volunteers from Holcim, Lafarge, LRCP, Angel Brigade, Mindanao State University-College of Medicine, Dios Mabalos Po Foundation, Bukidnon State University, MSU-IIT College of Engineering, Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, Facial Care Center, and the military. The activity made the Feast day of Sto. Nino more meaningful, not just to Christians, but to volunteers of other faiths who participated in the mission. The second medical mission was in Brgy. Bonbonon in partnership with the Jesus Christ is Lord (JCIL) group and Pastor Bayani Areola, a local councilor. Doctors from MSU and nurses from Dios Mabalos Po Foundation from Bicol joined the mission which benefitted more than 100 patients, mostly children suffering from cough and colds. The third medical mission was in Limunsudan Proper, Brgy. Rogongon, the remotest barangay
of Iligan city, which can only be accessed via CDO and Bukidnon via a four hour trip on rough roads since access was cut from the Iligan side due to the landslides. We were requested by the LGU to assist in this mission since there were 160 affected families with 3,000 dependents who had not received any relief goods nor medical attention prior to our arrival. There was no medical officer or health clinic in this area. Limunsudan is an area prone to ambush and encounters among the military and lawless elements. It is located along the border of Bukidnon and Lanao Del Norte. The only volunteer group from Manila willing to work with the LGU, DSWD and local NGOs was PMSEA. We worked alongside NGOs opposed to mining but who considered us as friends in this mission. In fact, we are being requested to conduct medical missions in the area every six months.
02