SUNDAY evening, I began drafting this article to anticipate a full week ahead. I’m now on my sixth month in Bohol and so far, I’m still using fresh lens – I’m not jaded yet haha! – at the way I look at occurrences in my home province.
For instance, I met with two fishers Sunday afternoon, listened to their stories, and realized how traditional politics has become a curse in this country. From General Santos City to Tagbilaran City, it’s the same story, if you’re not an ally of the barangay chairperson, you can be sure you’re last in the priority – if at all a part of it – in the scheme of things. It bloody sucks!
Traditional politics aside, let’s investigate the fisherman’s simple life. Let’s listen to their story, animatedly narrated in Bisaya, which I translated to English.
“To begin the day, I usually leave at four in the morning together with other fisherfolk from our barangay. Proceeding to the fishing grounds, if we notice a school of fish, we literally race to the area which means that if one is fast, one arrives first and readily catches using hook and line.”
They then return to their barangay quay around noon. (Note: They invited me to check the place anytime. I said, yes, I will do that.) “In the past, I can catch twenty kilograms (kg) in one fishing trip. At present, on a good day, the catch is ten kg which I sell at P180 per kg.” Now, if we multiply ten by P180, that’s P1,800 less all the fishing trip expenses – fuel, bait, others, and our decent fisherman earns a net income of only P1,000 for a day! That amount will meet the needs of his family also for a day.
This is routine every day. Now, fishing is seasonal. When it rains, the catch is small. When the moon is up, the catch is extremely limited. “Sometimes, we come home without a catch,” says our fisher. What happens to their family needs then? Ah! That’s a question for the community to answer. They borrow money from the community lender to cover for the family’s needs and for the next fishing trip. That borrowed money must be paid naturally. I think you get the drift. It’s a cycle of borrowing and paying especially if the season is not good for them.
According to our fisher, there are new laws, and most fishermen don’t know about the laws. Violations are committed but the question they ask: “What’s our alternative? If we don’t fish, we don’t eat.” Moreover, “We would like the government agency looking out for us to explain the new laws and give us options.” That sounds fair, doesn’t it?
These simple fisherfolk use hook and line fishing and can never compete with the commercial fishers whose fishing vessels are huge and designed for a bigger catch.
And I asked about the cost of fish in Bohol. Who better to ask than the fisherman himself, huh! But I believe you have heard this explanation before. It’s still the law of supply and demand. If fish demand is bigger and fetches a higher price in the neighboring cities, naturally, the supplier will bring the goods there. It’s business after all.
But my concern is the small fisherfolk. We know the cost of fish from their end. How much do we buy fish from the market? The fishermen do not control the market, do they? They catch the fish and bring the fish to the vendor (woman or man) and in turn the vendor sells the fish at the mercado or along the road which is the vogue in many places these days.
While we are debating the price of fish in our beloved province, the fisherman goes to sleep, rises at four in the morning, proceeds to the fishing ground, sits on his motorized banca readying his hook and line to start his activity for the day – while the rest of us grumblers still snore in comfortable beds, utters a prayer for a bountiful catch, waits patiently while the sun rises cloaking him in morning glory, and by midday returns to the coast where the vendor is happily awaiting his return – fish or no fish at all. That ends his fishing day.
For all his sacrifice, patience, and use of brawn and diskarte, his income for one good day is P1,000 and he is happy with that. What about you?
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Writer hosts Woman Talk with Belinda Sales at 91.1 Balita FM Tagbilaran City every Saturday, 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. She can be reached at belindabelsales@gmail.com. Twitter @ShilohRuthie/PN
