MINDA FORMS TECHNICAL GROUP TO LEAD PICOP REHABILITATION

The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) yesterday formed a Technical Working Group (TWG) to lead the efforts to revive and rehabilitate the mothballed wood processing facility in Bislig City, Surigao del Sur, the Paper Industries Development Corp. (PICOP).

The development was the result of the virtual conference arranged by MinDA which involved key players in the project, the Court-appointed Rehabilitation Receiver Francisco Buencamino, and officials of Bislig City.

Bislig City Mayor Florencio Garay who had asked MinDA’s help earlier in reviving the PICOP was inexplicably absent along with the Vice Mayor but this hardly affected the proceedings.

Among the salient points reached and agreed upon yesterday were:

1. The facilities of PICOP, while these had been raided and pilfered by groups identified with the workers’ union, could still be made operational with the installation of modern equipment; Francisco Buenacamino said the owners of PICOP are willing to make additional investments to re-operate the facility now that the Total Log Ban Policy implemented during the previous administration had been lifted;

3. The Supreme Court case which stemmed from the petition for foreclosure filed by the Land Bank of the Philippines who had granted the corporation over P2-B in loans must be addressed as this is the remaining stumbling block in the move to start the rehabilitation;

4. The LGU of Bislig has pledged its support for the rehabilitation and revival of the facility which at one time was the biggest pulp and paper mill in Asia which employed 20,000;

5. Participants in yesterday’s Virtual Conference agreed to set a timetable of one year to complete the process and re-operate the mill;

PICOP

6. LGU officials who attended yesterday’s virtual conference emphasized that the people of Bislig City, especially the Tree Farmers, would greatly benefit from the rehabilitation and reoperation of the paper mill.

The membership of the TWG will be known on Friday, Aug. 27.