Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa affirms that he will follow up with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on the issue of resorts established near the buffer zones of Mount Apo. In an ambush interview with the media on Friday afternoon, June 28, 2024, at SM Ecoland, Dela Rosa said that he intends to check on DENR's progress regarding the resorts situated at the buffer zones of the highest peak in the Philippines, as the department regulates activities at Mt. Apo.
“Maganda ang lugar, sayang ang lugar if mapabayaan (The place is beautiful; it would be shameful if it were neglected),” he said. The senator expressed that even before the law (Republic Act No. 9237) was enacted people were already residing in the area.
He mentioned that, like himself, before the law was crafted, he used to sell fish in the area. “Before nagawa ang batas na yan andiyan na ang mga tao na yan. Like me, wala pa ang batas na yan andon na ako umaakyat, nagbebenta ng isda maliit pa ako noon (Before that law was crafted, those people were already there.
Like me, before that law existed, I was already climbing up there, selling fish when I was still young),” he said. The Mount Apo Protected Area Act of 2003, also known as Republic Act No. 9237, was enacted on February 3, 2004.
The law aims to protect Mount Apo's ecology and indigenous culture while allowing for sustainable development within designated buffer zones. To recall, Dela Rosa visited the area and expressed his int.
