WPS fisheries pushed to assert sovereignty

Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS) Commodore Jay Tarriela holds a press briefing  in Manila. —Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net

BATARAZA, PALAWAN, Philippines — Increasing civilian activities bolsters sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), according to Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesperson for West Philippine Sea Commodore Jay Tarriela.

“This time around, we need to change the narrative. We have to highlight the fact that WPS has a large contribution when it comes to food security of our country,” Tarriela said after the launch of the Kadiwa ng Bagong Bayaning Mangingisda (KBBM) program on Wednesday.

He added this is “a positive engagement to show evidence that WPS issues are not only a concern of the coast guard, military or uniformed services.”

“This affects the ordinary Filipinos because when it comes to fish catch, a large portion comes from WPS,” he added.

READ: Tarriela: Next president must do more than make jet ski promises in WPS

‘Payao’ in WPS

The PCG, together with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, were also supposed to install “payao” (fish aggregating device) in Hasa-hasa Shoal, Kanduli Shoal and Rozul Reef after the KBBM launch but postponed the activity to a later date due to a sudden change in weather condition.

Tarriela said the payao would serve as additional support to the KBBM program.

He also said they have actually installed payao in the areas last year but fisherfolk reported that some of them are missing so they requested for new ones.

He also stated the KBBM program will benefit fisherfolk and will likely encourage them to venture out farther into the sea for more catch.

The KBBM program aims to uplift the livelihood of fisherfolk through the subsidized procurement of their catch where the government through the Department of Agriculture will send buyers directly to the fishermen to ensure them of a market for their products.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Genevieve Guevarra said the initiative also supplements the Kadiwa ng Pangulo program where the fishermen’s products will be bought directly.

The usual problem of fisherfolk here in Palawan is their difficulty in selling their catch because they do not have access to a bigger market.

“So our objective right now is to encourage our fishermen to go beyond the territorial sea for two reasons: one, bigger catch and that would mean higher supply so there’s a very high possibility that if we are going to sustain this, the prices will go lower in Manila other areas in Luzon,” he elaborated. /cb