High Court at Wellington.

Stuart Grieve, counsel for the applicants who include the company's former chairman John Dow and former chief executive Peter Whittall, told Justice Ronald Young the men who submitted the statements had vital experience in areas the commission was investigating.

Mr Grieve said the commission was set up to find the truth of what happened to cause the explosions at the West Coast mine in November 2010, in which 29 miners were killed.

Justice Young said he had the chance to file new evidence during the hearings but didn't.

Mr Grieve said while the applicants did not have new evidence, they should have been able to have the chance to question others who did have new evidence.

Whittall and Pike River Coal face a total of 21 charges, brought byMANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Wednesday declared five more towns in Romblon province "drug cleared," meaning there are no more drug personalities there.

Romblon News Network reported that Banton, Corcuera, Concepcion and San Andres and Santa Maria towns were declared drug free in a press conference at the Governor's Sub-Office in Odiongan by PDEA MIMAROPA (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan).

Calatrava in Romblon, San Teodoro and Mansalay in Oriental Mindoro and Magsaysay in Occidental Mindoro were earlier declared "drug cleared", Romblon News Network reported.

The declaration came after the barangay drug abuse councils certified that their villages were already free of drugs, users and pushers.

The PDEA, Armed Forces of the Philippines, local government units and stakeholders also helped assess the areas.

PDEA said some of the barangays in the