President Duterte To Suspend Mayors, Brgy. Chairmen Who Fail To Stop Illegal Fishing In Their Area
Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol announced that he will
recommend to President Rody Duterte the suspension of Mayors and Brgy. Chairmen
who fail to stop illegal fishing in their communities.
According to Piñol, after a consultation with fish industry
stakeholders on January 4, 2017 in the first Biyaheng Bukid for the year, coastal
towns with persistent reports of illegal fishing will be identified in a “shame
campaign” to address illegal fishing in the country.
“The government is serious on its campaign to stop illegal
fishing activities across the nation,” said Piñol.
Illegal fishing activities include cyanide and dynamite
fishing.
The DA Chief was at the Port of Dalahican in Lucena City, Quezon for a face to face
dialogue with fishing stakeholders of the province. He also met with Mayors
Paulino Sayat and Joselito Alega of Pitogo and San Francisco towns,
respectively.
Furthermore, Piñol expressed alarm over the significant
decline of fish catch in a span of four years.
From 2012-2016, total fish catch delivered to the Port of
Dalahican was reduced from 5 million kilos to 1 million kilos.
Port Manager Jose Abarquez stated that one of the factors
which resulted in the decline was the destruction of fishing boats during
typhoon Glenda in 2014.
Moreover, fishing efforts have also been reduced and some
fishers opted to farm instead.
During the consultation, Piñol recommended the review of on-going
guidelines for municipal fishing grounds; declarations of closed fishing season
by the local government units; continuous support to the campaign of the local
government against illegal fishing; and a strengthened cooperation between DA
and the LGUs to stop illegal fishing operations.
“We will provide the local government speedboats to aid them
in their effort to catch illegal fishers,” said Piñol.
“At the end of the day, we want to provide available and
affordable food in line with the directive of President Duterte,” he added.
President Duterte To Suspend Mayors, Brgy. Chairmen Who Fail To Stop Illegal Fishing In Their Area
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January 06, 2017
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