A place called Coto Mine Camp at Barangay Taltal in the Municipality of Masinloc, Zambales, Philippines is a small bucolic area nestled in the mountains surrounding the municipality. It blossomed into a village when miners at the old Coto Mines run by the massive Benguet Mining Company started to permanently settle at the Camp located around the perimeter of the 745-hectare mining area where chromite was mined.
As years went by, the Camp that started with a few small houses eventually grew into a full-blown village. Many families started to call it home and with Benguet Mining providing community support like housing, medical care, and even education for the children, not to mention the jobs, the village progressively became vibrant.
One of the features of the village during the heydays of mining was a gorgeous river that run through the town with crystal clear waters coming down from the mountain springs and cascading through rocks and boulders on its way out to the famed and now hotly contested West Philippine Sea.
Benguet Mining existed from 1930’s to 2006. Eventually it had to close as its operating agreement with the Consolidated Mining that owns the mineral rights expired. Up until 1981, the mining was open-pit and then shifted to underground mining as the ore got deeper.
A few other companies took over, notably one from mainland China. But that company allegedly employed illegal aliens and all the agreements that allowed them to mine were rescinded.
Today, the mine is just a ghost of the past with mining equipment strewn all over the place. Mother nature started to take over, spreading its vegetation all over the hills.
Mining at Coto, in the near term is over despite the formidable bid of the Consolidated Mining Company to re-open the mines. This is due to a stout community opposition based on long term environmental concerns. Additionally, there are doubts about the “reliability “ of the company to do “responsible mining”.
The end of mining considerably affected the community. However, exigencies emboldened the community to find other means to survive. They converted the river area into a robust tourist attraction thus bringing revenue to the locals. This in some ways slowly compensated for the losses in mining.
But like most villages in the Philippines, community health care in Coto particularly dental care remains an issue. Reports indicate that although the Municipality of Masinloc provided a small dental clinic at the Rural Health Unit located at Sitio Mandaloy, Barangay Taltal, 3 kilometers from Coto Camp, services are mostly tooth extractions due to inadequate equipment.
Alarmed by the shortcomings, and familiar with what the Foundation does, Ronaldo Pecson, a very successful engineer who was born and raise at Coto, requested the Foundation to consider doing a project at the area and help improve the dental clinic. He channeled the request through his first cousin, Marcela de la Vega, the CFO of the Foundation.
Acceding to the request, the Foundation agreed to provide the equipment and instruments for the clinic to allow the dentist to improve his diagnostic abilities and infection control protocols. More importantly, it will allow him to do more phases of dentistry other than just tooth extractions.
But there is a proviso.
The Municipality must renovate and expand at their expense, the dental clinic per a design to be provided by the Foundation so that all the equipment to be donated will fit and function seamlessly.
Discussions are now underway with the Municipal Government. So far, a space has been identified at the aforementioned Rural Health Unit at Sitio Mandaloy that is suitable for expansion of the clinic. That indeed is a positive sign.
But there is a major sticking point.
As in all projects the Foundation has done together with other municipalities, funding for renovation is always an issue. Pointless bureaucracy and political agenda many times gets on the way, negatively affecting a project whose only goal is to provide what is good for the community.
Masinloc is a very progressive community and can well afford to fund the expansion of the clinic.
All that is needed is the political will to do so.
Apparently, there is indeed that political will.
Latest updates tell us that a Resolution asking for a Supplemental Budget to fund the remodeling of the clinic has been filed at the Sangguniang Bayan (Municipal Council). Hopefully, the Resolution passes and budget will be provided. That certainly, will kick start the project!
If everything works as expected, the project will hopefully be done and ready to provide services by February 2026.
The Dentistry for Every Village Foundation, Inc., raises funds by seeking grants and donations to build dental clinics. These clinics are donated to health care institutions that have the resources to house the facility, experiences and expertise to run them efficiently, and whose management is supportive of the cause.
