An alliance of fishermen is questioning the planned importation of 30,000 metric tons of staple fish products by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) chair Fernando Hicap said the BFAR led by Director Eduardo Gongona is using the three-month closed fishing season to “justify” the fish importation.
“Even with the closed fishing season, there are still many fish in the seas and in the market to choose from. No need to open our floodgates for imported fish,” he said.
Hicap explained that fish importation “threatens our local fishers whose fishery and marine products have been always outcompeted by imported ones.”
He added farmgate prices would fall as the imported fish are “relatively cheaper due to inferior quality being frozen.”
Pamalakaya said there is no reason to import staple fish products like “galunggong” or round scad following Gongona’s statement the importation is part of the “conservation measure.”
The Philippines will import fish from other countries to maintain a steady supply of fish amid the closed fishing season which started this month.
Gongona said the fishing ban could last until February or March next year.
The fishers’ group warned BFAR of creating “artificial shortage” during the three-month period, thereby affecting the country’s small fisherfolk.