Fishermen in Sipalay City, Negros Occidental, pulling in their net.*Ronnie Baldonado photo
Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said he is joining other local government units in appealing to the Supreme Court to reverse its decision allowing commercial fishing in the 15-kilometer municipal waters, which threatens the livelihood of small fisherfolk.
It also threatens the billion-peso blue crab industry, he said.
Lacson said he has also asked the Negros Occidental Sangguniang Panlalawigan to pass a resolution opposing the SC ruling.
The case where Mercidar Fishing Corporation questioned the constitutionality of the Fisheries Code of the Philippines was lost at the SC because of a technicality, he said.
Someone was remiss and failed to file a reply within the 15-day period, and it would be interesting to know who that was, Lacson said.
The Dec. 19, 2024, SC ruling removed the 15-kilometer municipal water demarcation, which had prioritized municipal fisherfolk and regulated commercial fishing operations within those waters, Lacson said.
The governor said he believes the SC could overturn its decision.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in January said it had asked the SC to reverse its decision.
Former Agriculture secretary Leonardo Montemayor accused BFAR and the Department of Agriculture of “sleeping on the job and failing to appeal the Court’s decision within the required period.”
Lacson said he is one with all the other local government units opposed to the SC ruling that will put small fisherfolk at a disadvantage.
“It will really only benefit big players, the commercial fishers, to the detriment of the small fisherfolk,” Lacson said.
The 15-kilometer municipal waters are vital for the livelihoods of more than 45,000 marginalized fishing communities with 472 fisherfolk associations in the 25 coastal cities and municipalities of Negros Occidental covering 187 barangays, ensuring food security, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable fisheries management, the governor said.*