Mining Land Dispute Continues in Bolaang Mongondow, North Sulawesi
The mining land dispute in Tanoyan Bersatu Village, Lolayan District, Bolaang Mongondow (Bolmong) Regency, North Sulawesi, continues unabated. Both parties — the KSB group and members of the Koperasi Unit Desa (KUD) Perintis village cooperative — have been exchanging accusations and counterclaims.
On Sunday (15/6/2025), Ali Kobandaha, the mining public relations officer for corridor 7, broke his silence. "The miners in corridor 7 have been contributing to land payments, post-mining reclamation costs, and even fees for the Annual Mining Work Plan (RKAB) and other expenses since 2018-2019," he said.
In 2020, KUD Perintis obtained a mining business permit (IUP) valid for 10 years. This led to a cooperation contract containing a clause stipulating that failure to operate for six months would result in automatic termination.
"However, between 2021 and 2022, the permit was revoked by the Minister of BKPM because several documents needed to be completed," he explained.
At the time of the permit revocation, the then-chairman of KUD Perintis, Sarif Alimudin, issued a letter ordering the cessation of all mining activities across the 100-hectare area. "The letter stated that operations should be halted temporarily, and once matters were resolved and operations resumed, all contracts would be amended for continued work," Kobandaha said.
This meant that none of the contracts had technically lapsed, as the letter constituted a directive for temporary suspension following the BKPM Ministry's decision. "From this point, KUD Perintis began the process of completing all the documents requested, which the cooperative needed to fulfil in order to become active again," he said.
Additionally, KUD Perintis made commitments with BKPM and signed an integrity pact containing six points. "However, despite having been signed, this was still insufficient to reactivate the cooperative, and as a result, chairman Sarif's leadership was replaced as he was deemed to have failed," he explained.
A leadership transition subsequently took place in March 2024, with Jasman Tonggi assuming the role of chairman of KUD Perintis. "After his inauguration, Jasman and the members simply needed to continue the document processing that could not be completed under the previous leadership," he said.
KUD Perintis is the sole cooperative managing mining operations in Bolmong.
On Sunday (15/6/2025), Ali Kobandaha, the mining public relations officer for corridor 7, broke his silence. "The miners in corridor 7 have been contributing to land payments, post-mining reclamation costs, and even fees for the Annual Mining Work Plan (RKAB) and other expenses since 2018-2019," he said.
In 2020, KUD Perintis obtained a mining business permit (IUP) valid for 10 years. This led to a cooperation contract containing a clause stipulating that failure to operate for six months would result in automatic termination.
"However, between 2021 and 2022, the permit was revoked by the Minister of BKPM because several documents needed to be completed," he explained.
At the time of the permit revocation, the then-chairman of KUD Perintis, Sarif Alimudin, issued a letter ordering the cessation of all mining activities across the 100-hectare area. "The letter stated that operations should be halted temporarily, and once matters were resolved and operations resumed, all contracts would be amended for continued work," Kobandaha said.
This meant that none of the contracts had technically lapsed, as the letter constituted a directive for temporary suspension following the BKPM Ministry's decision. "From this point, KUD Perintis began the process of completing all the documents requested, which the cooperative needed to fulfil in order to become active again," he said.
Additionally, KUD Perintis made commitments with BKPM and signed an integrity pact containing six points. "However, despite having been signed, this was still insufficient to reactivate the cooperative, and as a result, chairman Sarif's leadership was replaced as he was deemed to have failed," he explained.
A leadership transition subsequently took place in March 2024, with Jasman Tonggi assuming the role of chairman of KUD Perintis. "After his inauguration, Jasman and the members simply needed to continue the document processing that could not be completed under the previous leadership," he said.
KUD Perintis is the sole cooperative managing mining operations in Bolmong.