PHILIPPINE Mine Safety and Environment Association (PMSEA) president Louie Sarmiento said the 56th annual convention will push through as planned.

“There is no other place to hold the event but here,” Sarmiento said.

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He said despite the pullout of the Advertising Congress from the city citing safety reasons, PMSEA did not even think of changing venues.

At least 700 delegates from all over the country will converge here for the annual conference with this year’s theme “Responsible Mining for a Strong Republic.”

The convention will start on the 11th to the 14th of this month.

An income of at least P3.5 million a day is expected to be earned by locals during the four-day event.

Department of Tourism (DOT) estimates a tourist spends a minimum of P5,000 a day in Baguio, representing food, transportation and shopping.

The PMSEA is an organization of mining companies, quarries, cement plants, suppliers, service contractors, professional organizations and government agencies that advocate a national campaign on occupational safety, health and environmental hazards of mining and its related operations.

“There is no better time than now to hold the convention in the city, it is the time it most needs us,” Sarmiento said.

Baguio traces its roots to mining in its early stages of its development.

“We would also like to reach out to Benguet and other parts of the region,” Sarmiento said.

In the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), mining companies are scattered, giving local employment and income to their host communities.

“This is where the organization was born, we will stay to help,” Sarmiento said.

The coming of the PMSEA group is a welcome respite from the ill-received pullout of the Advertising Congress which harped on road safety leading to the city as primary reason for their sudden change of plans.

Anthony de Leon said that “ironically, there was no domino effect of the Ad Congress pullout. It was just them [advertising companies].”

De Leon chairs the three big tourism stakeholders’ groups in the city: the Baguio Tourism Council, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Baguio, and the Baguio Conventions and Visitors Bureau.