Posted on September 8, 2025
MANILA — Several residents, along with some local officials of Oriental Mindoro, staged a protest in front of the Gloria town public market against alleged dredging of rivers and seas, which they claimed would damage the environment.
The dredging project is being pushed by the provincial government as a solution to flooding.
Beata Luha, one of the protesters and a resident of Barangay Balete, said that the shoreline in their area has been gradually eroding.
“Talagang tutol po ako dahil ranas na ranas ko po kung paano dumating yung malalaking alon, nakaapat na lipat na po ang bahay ko, nakaapat na atras na,” she said.
(I really oppose this because I have experienced the huge waves coming in. I have moved houses four times because the water keeps rising)
Vice Governor Jojo Perez, who also joined the protest, said that the current 12th Sangguniang Panlalawigan does not support sea dredging, which is why they revoked the resolution passed by the previous 11th Sangguniang Panlalawigan.
Perez explained that dredging would affect many lives and livelihoods of residents.
“Nawawala yung pinagkakakitaan, yung pangingisda,” Perez said.
(The dredging disrupts fishing)
DOLOR: NO DREDGING YET
Gov. Humerlito “Bonz” Dolor, meanwhile, is pushing for river dredging as part of a river restoration program to address decades-long flooding problems in Oriental Mindoro.
Oriental Mindoro Gov. defends dredging in Balete River
The governor insisted that no sea dredging and no sand mining are taking place.
He added that no actual dredging has happened yet in rivers. Instead a test dredge was conducted last April at the Balete River mouth in Gloria town.
He said that opposition to dredging may be due to misinformation.
“Ang sabi nila no to sand mining, walang sand mining, maliwanag yun, walang mina sa Oriental Mindoro,” Dolor said.
(They say no to sand mining, but there is none. That is clear, there is no mining in Orienral Mindoro)
He said he was the author of the ordinance banning sand mining and that he had extended the effectivity of the ban.
He said there is no commercial dredging in the province, only river dredging to let ships come in.
One of the dredging proponents previously admitted that the sand to be collected would be brought to the airport project in Bulacan for landfilling.
But Dolor argued this should not be considered mining, since under the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, an area can only be classified as mining if the mineral content exceeds 50 percent. Based on studies in Balete River, the mineral content is less than 7 percent.
Perez said that he and the protesters believe digging up minerals and transporting them is still mining.
LARGE-SCALE DREDGING SUSPENDED
Dolor also revealed that as early as August 8, he had suspended the notice to proceed and operating permit for large-scale dredging in Balete River in Gloria town, and on August 22 for the Alag and Longos Rivers in Baco town, to allow more thorough studies.
The governor claimed that the protest was politically motivated, organized by his rivals to cover up alleged anomalies in flood control projects that he had been exposing.
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Mindoro Oriental 2nd District Rep. Alfonso Umali, one of the leaders of the protest, refused to give a comment.
“Hindi magandang kausap siya, kaya huwag na, baka hindi ako makapagpigil mamura ko pa siya,” Umali said.
(He is difficult to talk to, so I would rather not say anything because I might utter profanities)
Perez, meanwhile, denied that politics is the motive behind their protest.
More flood control projects collapse in Oriental Mindoro
“Ang tinututulan namin ho dito ay hindi ho yung river restoration o yun flood mitigation project, napakaimportante ho noon flood mitigation project sa lalawigan,” Perez said.
(We are not opposing river restoration or the flood mitigation project, that is very important to the province)
Oriental Mindoro suffers almost yearly flooding because silt has clogged rivers, making them prone to overflowing.
The companies behind the proposed dredging said they had already secured complete permits to carry out dredging operations in the rivers.
Oriental Mindoro gov shows collapsed dike to DPWH director: ‘Kalokohan na ito’
