More TVIRD scholars earn college degrees

Kano Candawan was a picture of a proud father. His face, wrinkled by age
and years of hardship as a farmer, glowed as his son Ernie walked up onto
the stage to receive his diploma certifying that he has completed his Bachelor
of Science degree in Industrial Technology. Kano’s demeanor was quite
understandable. His son is the first college graduate in the Candawan clan,
and among the very few in Canatuan to finish a four-year tertiary level course.
Just a few years earlier, Ernie’s feat seemed unattainable for a 13-member
family whose subsistence has depended on tilling the soil for generations.

Ernie is one of the three college level scholars of TVI Resource
Development Philippines, Inc. (TVIRD) who graduated this year from Jose Rizal
Memorial State College (JRMSC), the lone state college in Siocon, Zamboanga
del Norte. The second scholar, Alfredo Sienes, Jr,. also finished his four-year
Bachelor in Criminology degree, while the third, Manilyn Tabuco, completed
her two-year Midwifery course.

TVIRD operates a Sulphide (Copper-Zinc) mine in Canatuan, the ancestral domain
of the Subanon indigenous people (IP), in the mountainous eastern portion
of this town. Last year, four other IPs were able to finish their two-year
college courses under the TVIRD College Scholarship Program.

“Sending my children to school, even to high school which is already
free, has been difficult – almost impossible for us, especially with
the high cost of living nowadays,” Kano said. “My wife Aida and
I could not have seen Ernie through college without the help of TVIRD. Without
its scholarship program, my Ernie would not have been able to achieve his
dream.”

Celebrating with the three scholars during and after the graduation ceremonies
were Jose Dagala and Noelle Nazareno, both supervisors of TVIRD’s Community
Relations and Development Office (CReDO), who prepared a sumptuous lunch for
the graduates, their parents, and the other company scholars who cannot hide
their excitement over the prospect that their turn to graduate will also come.

Dagala said TVIRD’s College Scholarship Program is part of the Social
Development and Management Plan (SDMP), formulated with inputs from the company’s
host and impact communities during consultations prior to the construction
of the Sulphide Project. The Program, he added, is a priority project under
the SDMP as it is “based on the firm belief that sustainable development
can only be attained if residents of these communities have the capacity to
develop on their own, following plans that they themselves designed and will
implement. Education is one avenue that will help build this capacity.”

He continued: “By giving the Subanons in the Canatuan ancestral domain
and the poor but deserving students from our impact communities the opportunity
to free college education, we are paving the way for sustainable development
beyond the life of our mine.”

Under the Program, 25 scholars – 15 from among the holders of the Canatuan
Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title and 10 from the impact communities –
can enroll in four-year bachelor’s degree courses such as Elementary
Education, Secondary Education, Industrial Technology, and Agriculture at
JRMSC. The scholars are entitled to free tuition fees as well as allowances
for board and lodging, books and uniforms, and incidental expenses. They also
attend training sessions on value formation, personality development and skills
enhancement.

TVIRD, at the moment, has 18 scholars. Five of these will graduate next year:
one in Nursing, two in Computer Science, one in Elementary Education, and
another one in Industrial Technology.

Dr. Ideltruda Ybarzabal, campus administrator of JRMSC, said the three TVIRD
college scholars who graduated this year did well for the duration of their
schooling. “One of the reasons they finished their courses on time is
because of the support given by the company,” she said.

Loryjane Tabuco, Manilyn’s mother, expressed gratitude to the company
for the scholarship grant her daughter received. “I’m doubly thankful
to TVIRD for the assistance it has given to my family. Without the company,
my daughter would not have finished college.”

The Tabucos, Subanons like the Candawans, were affected by the ongoing mining
operations of the company. To keep the Tabucos safe, they were given just
compensation for their crops and shanty and resettled by the company to Kilalaban,
a village that is part of adjacent Baliguian town. Here they were able to
buy a coconut farm and a rice field, which are now their main livelihood sources.

Ernie, Alfredo and Manilyn are the latest in the growing number of young
Subanons who are benefiting, through education, from responsible mining. Their
number will increase further as TVIRD continues its mining operations in their
ancestral land. They are also part of a growing number of educated indigenous
people with great promise to occupy their own place in society – no
longer disadvantaged but fully capable of charting their own course. (Lullie
Micabalo)