Malacañang Tuesday asked Environment Secretary Lito Atienza to explain his purported spurious and railroaded issuance of the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for the operation of the Mindoro Nickel Project following the weeklong hunger strike that started in protest of the ECC approval amid the opposition of local government units, Church leaders, and civil society groups from Mindoro provinces.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said the Palace is counting on Atienza to answer the allegations hurled against him by the Alyansa Laban sa Mina (ALAMIN) that he railroaded the issuance of the ECC on October 14 at the height of massive flooding incidents in Manila.

“We will ask Secretary Atienza to respond to this issue and to look into the complaint of these people, the reason for their hunger strike. We will ask Secretary Atienza to explain to us,” he told the press briefing.

He agreed that the issue deserves an investigation since the ECC approval was a violation of the Oriental Mindoro’s ordinance imposing a 25-year moratorium on large-scale mining.

Remonde said the government is committed to “strike a balance” between sustainable mining and environmental protection.

“There is such a thing as sustainable development like sustainable mining. That’s why it’s really government’s duty to strike a balance between these two so maganda talagang tingnan at saka ang ahensya ng gobyerno that is responsible for this which is DENR so kaya nga na maganda nga at tama na tanungin natin si Secretary Atienza kung ano ba talaga ng puno’t dulo ng isyung ito,” he said.

Fr. Edu Gariguez, who heads the ALAMIN, said Atienza should consider the “very fragile ecosystems” of Mindoro island, known as the Southern Luzon’s food basket, before nodding to the nickel project of the Norwegian firm Intex Resources that would affect the province’s critical watershed areas of Mag-asawang Tubig and Bucayao River Systems that provide irrigation water for 70 percent of province’s rice fields and fruit plantations.

About 25 hunger strikers began the first day of the vigil with representatives from the local government units from Occidental and Oriental Mindoro.

Wednesday, they are set to be joined by the representatives from the Church, the Apostolic Vicariate of Calaapan led by Bishop Warlito Cajandig and Apostolic Vicariate of San Jose. A holy mass is expected to be held at the campsite of the hunger strikers.