ENVIRONMENT WATCH

Jack Dulnuan on how to get rich

LAMUT, Ifugao – Successful businessman Jack Dulnuan, an Ifugao native recent shared his secret formula on getting rich saying planting fruit bearing trees could be a good source of livelihood of constituents in mountainous areas of this province.

During the recent Ifugao Provincial Agricultural and Fishery Council Congress held at the Ifugao State College of Arts and Forestry, Dulnuan told participants Ifugao can never compete in rice farming against the lowlands like in Isabela, Vizcaya, La Union, and Pangasinan where they have plain and wide agricultural lands to plant rice.

“Ifugao has mountainous land good for agriculture. Ifugao can not compete in rice farming but farmers can compete with fruits from fruit bearing trees. We have enough mountains to farm oranges, pomelo, guyabano, and other more fruits wherein lowlands have less production,” Dulnuan said.

Dulnuan who owns several farmlands including strawberry farms in La Trinidad, Benguet revealed his secret of getting rich: “Dakayu gamin nga kakailian dituy Ifugao, nu adda kuarta yu, apan yu ibiruk iti pangigastusan yu. Nu ibiruk yu kuma iti pangi-invesan yu, di madoble kuma dayta kuwarta yu.”

This meant, he said, saving their money and investing them the proper way.

The humble Dulnuan also gave potshots at the way of living of people in government who are always longing for wage increase. “Dakayu nga agtrab-trabaho iti gobyerno, dakayu kuma ti kababaknangan tatta. Reklamo kayu nga reklamo iti sweldo yu ngem nu kitaen tayu ti ikista yu nga aggastu, subra met ngamin ta mangan kayu iti mamin-lima iti maysa nga aldaw. Mangan kayu ti agsapa, agmeryenda kayu iti alas diyes, mangan kayu iti alas dose, agmeryenda kayu manen iti alas tres, tapos mangan kayu pay iti pang rabii. Agasem ngay dayta”

He inspired his fellow Ifugaos by telling his own story when he was still working without a business. He said when he got hungry, he went to a store and bought bread good enough to sustain his hunger. After eating, he asked the store owner for water. “Dakayu gamin, kailangan ti softdrinks. Madi yu ti danum. Isu a nga haan kayu nga bumaknang.”

Before he ended his speech, he advised Gov. Baguilat to instruct the Ifugao people to start planting fruit bearing trees to be productive and help in boosting the economy of the province. Dulnuan was born at Barangay Asipulo of Kiangan and grew up in La Trinidad, Benguet where he started his business career. – Jun Kindipan Dumar


Contract signed to explore Kalinga geothermal energy

TINGLAYAN, Kalinga -- The Department of Energy signed recently the Kalinga Geothermal Service Contract with Aragorn Power and Energy Corp. and Guidance Management Corp. for the exploration of geothermal power source in the municipalities of Lubuagan, Pasil, and Tinglayan.

The GSC was signed in Manila by Secretary Angelo Reyes for DOE, Willy Ocier and Joaquin Rodriguez for APEC and GMC respectively. A separate memorandum of agreement was signed between the communities who have given their “free and prior informed consent” (FPIC) for the project and the two geothermal companies.

According to the National Commission for Indigenous Peoples provincial office here, the contract allows APEC and GMC to explore an area of 26,250 hectares for the duration of 50 years: five-year exploration period with 2 years extension; 25 years production and 18 years extension.

As of this writing, of the 11 ancestral domains covered by the application for exploration, only the IPs of Colayo, Balatoc, Guinaang, Dangtalan, and Dalupa-Ableg, all of Pasil have given their FPIC for the project.

Earlier, IPs in the ancestral domains of Tulgao, Dananao, Sumadel, Tonglayan, Bangad all of Tinglayan; and Uma in Lubuagan, complained to DoE why they were included in the coverage of the exploration when in fact no FPIC came from them.

According to NCIP-Kalinga Field Office, the GSC stipulates that only the areas with the FPIC of the indigenous peoples (IP) affected are to be explored. While conducting consultations with the remaining IPs to get their FPIC, the NCIP assured the communities that the provision of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act are strictly followed by the power and energy companies.

DOE also assured complaining IPs that although their barangays were included in the application for exploration, APEC and GMC are not permitted to explore in their areas unless their FPIC on the project is obtained.

Under the separate MOA between APEC-GMC and the four communities who gave their FPIC on the project, terms and conditions were clearly stipulated for compliance by both parties. If geothermal power is found positive, another MOA will be forged to govern the production stage, this time under the terms of the Philippine geothermal law. -- PIA-Kalinga