ILOILO – Illegal fishing remains a problem in the northern part of the province.
Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. said he keeps receiving reports from the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) and the Iloilo Provincial Bantay Dagat Task Force about boats apprehended for illegal fishing in the municipal waters of Barotac Viejo, Ajuy, Concepcion, San Dionisio, Sara, Batad, Lemery, Estancia, Balasan, Carles, and San Rafael.
“We have results but ara sa gihapon ang problema,” said Defensor when Panay News asked if illegal fishing has been minimized.
He added: “May mga pangayaw kita halin sa iban nga probinsya, may ara man nga dira man lang.”
Among Defensor’s orders to IPPO director Colonel Ronaldo Palomo was to focus on illegal fishing in northern Iloilo.
Campaign
Defensor recently met with the Northern Iloilo Alliance for Development (NIAD), composed of local chief executives (LCEs) of the 5th District, or northern Iloilo, to rationalize the implementation of the campaign against illegal fishing and clarify the responsibilities of the LGUs and the provincial government.
The province has formed the Iloilo Provincial Bantay Dagat Task Force, while municipalities in northern Iloilo have created municipal taskforces.
The governor said the municipal taskforce should be the first to respond to illegal fishing activities; the provincial Bantay Dagat would only augment.
To strengthen the anti-illegal fishing capabilities of LGUs, the provincial government released funds to purchase patrol boats.
“We are improving our assets. We downloaded P5 million to certain municipalities so they can construct a resilience hub nga will be the headquarters of the Bantay Dagat and, of course, the headquarters of disaster response,” said Defensor.
He added: “The province wants to increase ang aton nga capacity based on the practical plan that we come up with, and we will continue to help our municipalities.”
The governor said the provincial government would also help coastal towns in southern Iloilo – Oton, Tigbauan, Guimbal, Miag-ao, Igbaras, Tubungan, Miag-ao, and San Joaquin.
Today, June 5, is the International Day for the Fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, or IUUF.
In 2021, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) issued 20 LGUs, including Carles in northern Iloilo, stern warnings for IUUF.
Carles was No. 10 on the list for most cases of IUUF violations (762 total detections).
Mayor Siegfredo A. Betita called on the national and provincial governments to intensify the fight against illegal fishing.
“What we need is national, regional and provincial help. Local [governments] could not stop (IUUF), only minimize it. Our Bantay Dagat is not big and fully armed, and our resources are not enough because the IRA (Internal Allotment Revenue) is based on land area, not sea area,” said Betita.
In February, the Carles LGU was the very first to organize the largest inter-agency taskforce against illegal fishing in the country.
The taskforce is composed of local and national enforcement agencies including Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources – Fisheries Protection and Law Enforcement Group 6, Carles Bantay Dagat headed by the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, DILG Region 6, Police Regional Office 6, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Philippine Coast Guard – Western Visayas, Philippine Navy, Regional Maritime Group, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency 6, Maritime Industry Authority 6, National Telecommunications Commission 6, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority 6, and Bureau of Customs – Port of Iloilo.
These agencies committed manpower and floating assets, among others, to help Carles manage, protect and conserve its municipal waters./PN
