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[av_heading heading=’‘ZERO ARRESTS’ No illegal fishing in Estancia? ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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Tuesday, October 24, 2017
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ILOILO – The municipality of Estancia in northern Iloilo is known for its rich fishing grounds that attract poachers even from neighboring provinces and islands. But since January this year, no one has been arrested for illegal fishing in its waters.
“Perhaps the local government unit is not focused enough on the illegal fishing problem,” said Senior Superintendent Marlon Tayaba, director of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO).
Mayor Rene Cordero of Estancia viewed the matter differently. He said there were no illegal fishing arrests in his town because the Iloilo Provincial Bantay Dagat Task Force was actively doing its job.
Other coastal towns in northern Iloilo or 5th District had several arrests, said Tayaba.
Data from the IPPO showed the following number of arrests from January to September this year: Barotac Viejo – 8; Carles – 7; Batad – 5; Ajuy – 5; Concepcion – 2; and San Dionisio – 1.
“Illegal fishers from Masbate, Cebu and Cadiz do not venture into our waters because of the Bantay Dagat. They are scared and do not want to be arrested,” said Cordero.
In Western Visayas, Estancia is considered a center for commercial fishing. It has a fish port and a pier, one of the most developed in the region.
While the province has a Bantay Dagat, Tayaba said, each coastal town must have their own anti-illegal fishing capability.
He also said illegal fishing should be a concern of not only the police but also of the Philippine Coast Guard and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), among other government agencies.
Gov. Arthur Defensor Sr. had said the Bantay Dagat could not totally stop illegal fishing activities in Iloilo’s vast territorial waters all by itself.
“From San Joaquin in southern Iloilo to Carles in the north – that’s the area our Bantay Dagat has to guard,” said Defensor.
Bantay Dagat only has seven patrol boats guarding Iloilo’s rich fishing grounds. According to Provincial Administrator Raul Banias, illegal fishing remains a problem, especially in northern Iloilo.
Most of the illegal fishers that Bantay Dagat apprehended were from neighboring provinces like Masbate, Cebu, Negros Occidental, and Capiz, said Defensor.
“Many fishermen, even from other provinces, are attracted to our rich fishing grounds. Sadly, some use illegal fishing methods such as destructive trawls or setting off dynamites,” said Defensor.
Monday last week, the local governments of Carles and Concepcion and BFAR Region 6 agreed to form a separate joint task force to combat illegal fishing.
The task force will run after those using destructive fishing gears such as hulbot-hulbot.
“It will convene regularly and conduct regular patrols in the municipal waters,” said BFAR regional director Remia Aparri. She signed the agreement for her agency.
Mayors Sigfredo Betita of Carles and a representative of Mayor Milliard Villanueva of Concepcion signed the pact on behalf of their respective local government units.
The task force will also be waging an information campaign on fishery laws.
As stated in the MOU, the task force will observe a “no tolerance” policy on violators of fishery laws./PN
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