tagabungtod

This is refined gold taken from the Mainit area. The main source of this is outside the Mainit Protected Area (this is how Mainit, our town treasure, is now officially designated after it was downgraded from a National Park classification---that is another long and interesting story) But the silt and the sludge which result from the mining activity flow downstream. That is why the river is now murky with sediments all the time.

The ores taken from these mine tunnels are brought to nearby barangays like Tagnocon and Katipunan where they are processed. The ores are crushed in ballmills where they are transformed into powder fineness. Tons of these are then loaded to a processing tank which extracts the gold through another process called cyanidation, so-called because they use the chemical cyanide to efficiently extract the gold. 99% of the gold is collected. The final result is what is shown in the picture.

After extraction, the wastes are supposed to be disposed of into tailing ponds. But some plant operators mercilessly and unconscionably throw them anywhere. Some even dump them in rivers (most of these processing plants are located near rivers) effectively clogging and polluting them.

This is prevalent not only in Mainit but everywhere in the mineral-rich Compostela Valley province. Because of our natural resources some Japanese, Chinese and Korean businessmen are now in the province buying tons of unprocessed ores which are directly shipped to their countries. As a result, middlemen are now in a frenzy trying to cash in on another mining bonanza.

Until the government finds a means to provide a better livelihood alternative for the people of our province, unabated, irresponsible, and uncontrolled mining will continue. Consequently, so will the unscrupulous and wanton destruction of our environment and natural resources.

After all these resources are depleted and gone, what?

I was rummaging through some of the photo albums we have and I came across this B&W picture which showed how Mainit looked like. I would place the year this was taken as either 1965 or 1966 since my father is shown here (sitting on a rock at the background while my mother is standing near him). This may have been his last visit there. He died in November 23, 1966. Fr. Kosnik, then assistant parish priest, is in the foreground (walay laing merkano). Some other recognizable faces are Goring Echavez, Andring Secuya and children Victor, Flora and Corazon, Anastacio and Anita Secuya and their daughters Teodora and Badette, Jaime Lopez, an ACN teacher, convent boys Paulino Hilot and Cris Ausan. I cannot trust my aging eyes to speculate on who the others are. These happy tagabungtods in the picture, I believe, are only part of a bigger parish group that went there that day.

You can see that those were the days when one can literally dive and swim in the natural "pools" of Mainit. These were not man-made. In fact it makes one wonder how those pools were naturally created for everybody to enjoy. On one part, we had one teeth-chattering, cold and deep pool (murag gitunaw nga ice ang katugnaw was our simplistic way of describing it) and in another part, a pool where the confluence of cold and hot streams provided us with a very enjoyable, relaxing and pleasurable swim and dip. I am sometimes mystified and awed at how God provides His creatures a special place where they can enjoy his creation --- just like these pools did.

But, alas, from the same picture you can also glean, from the huge logs washed downriver, how God's creatures, instead of paying obeisance and gratitude to what Nature has provided them, have rather chosen to be destructive. Instead of trying to help protect and preserve their environment, they destroy it. This is what happened to Mainit.

Now the natural swimming pools are gone. The crystal clear water currents are gone. The trees are almost gone. The peaceful and reverential silence of the place is gone. The kalaws (Great Hornbills) that faithfully remind us the time of day---perhaps knowing we are immersed in either our revelry or reverie while wading and wallowing in the water ---are gone.

This is what's left:

Maglana brothers. Tagabungtod. Shown clockwise:

Angelito "Yana" - from Grade 1 to high school he was our classmate. He finished agriculture at the Central Mindanao University in Musuan, Bukidnon. After graduation, he managed the family's agricultural farms which was slowly acquired by their parents through the years. After the death of their father, the brothers and sisters would later on divide these farms among themselves. An accomplished farmer, Yana, after years of devoting attention to his own farm, became a recipient of the Gawad Saka Award having been chosen as Outstanding Farmer in Region XI three or four years ago. He was consequently nominated as one of the Outstanding Farmer of the Year nationwide. You should see his farm! It is every farmer's, pseudo-farmer's (I count myself as one), would-be farmers, and even non-farmer's, --- dream. Yana and wife Corazon Agrabio are every now and then testing the market for processed and preserved fruits.

Wenifredo "Ikoy" - as a student Ikoy was consistently an honors-reaper. After graduating magna cum laude (valedictorian) from Ateneo de Davao University in 1968, he entered the UST College of Medicine. After graduation he went to the US to become a surgeon. After more than 30 years in the US, Ikoy divides his time by spending six months in Bufallo, NY and six months in Nabunturan. About five years ago, he established the Kinaiyahan Foundation, a non-government organization, which is commited to the rehabilitation and protection of Nabunturan's ecological and environmental resources, particularly the Mainit National Park.

Nicolas "Nick" - to his friends, he is simply Kulas. After finishing BSC Accounting at San Jose Recoletos in Cebu, Nick worked for the East Coast Development Co. in Baganga, Davao Oriental. Later he came home to Davao. For a while he managed their newly-established Deco Machine Shop. He went home to Nabunturan during the '80s where he would become a councilor, and later, vice-mayor. After politics, he would go into business. Nick is married to Marilyn Veloso from Leyte.

Santiago Jr. "Ago" - for many years, Ago, the youngest in the brood of nine, managed their corn mill in the poblacion while at the same time developing his own business and farm. His very friendly nature lured him into politics and he would serve Nabunturan for nine years as a member of the Sangguniang Bayan. His wife, Arlene "Inkay" Templanza, a provincial health nurse, is the daughter of elementary teachers Viriginia Aringa and Desiderio.

Nelson - graduating valedictorian from ACN high school, he took up mechanical engineering at the University of San Carlos in Cebu. After the board, he took over the management of the family machine shop in Davao City. Since that time, Deco has grown into one of the most technologically advanced and one of the biggest machine shops in Mindanao. Notwithstanding his remarkably outstanding efforts to make the family business grow, he found time to study law at the ADDU and become a lawyer, too. He is married to Judith Secuya, a physician, eldest daughter of true-blue tagabungtod, Marcelo and Andring Cabuga.

They are the boys in the family of the late Santiago "Ago" Maglana, Sr. and Rosario "Sayong" Peregrino who both hail from San Francisco, Leyte. They were an enterprising and very hardworking couple who started their life in Nabunturan in the '50s by selling bulad and ginamos in their pwesto in the old palengke. By sheer hardwork they would attain prosperity. Ago Sr. later on ventured into politics and became mayor of their hometown, San Francisco.

Where are the Maglana girls? Abangan!