Gov. Aris reactivates coastal protection

monitoring program, CLEC mechanisms

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, Nov 11 (PIA) –Again, considering that managing its coastal and marine resources is best implemented by a tightly knit network of local government units, Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado reconstitutes the coastal protection and monitoring program through its law award winning Bohol Coastal law Enforcement Council (CLEC) and provides mechanisms and implementing funds.

Through Executive Order No 47, which he signed October 24, 2022, the governor has also made more relevant the initial Memorandum of Agreement signed in 2001, between and among the Provincial Government, municipal and city local governments, national government agencies and non-government organizations setting up the Bohol CLEC.

CLEC is the brilliant measure which Bohol adopted in 2001, when it met tough issues in the implementation of the Fisheries Code of the Philippines through Republic Act 7160.

As the Fisheries Code gets implemented, heavily outnumbered marine law enforcement agencies play cat and mouse with poachers, illegal fishers and violators of the law, while marginal fishers end up with nothing to barely subsistence catch, endangering the regions resource management.

With Section 3 (g) in relation to 3(i) of the Local Government Code of 1991 which mandates the capabilities of LGUs especially municipalities and barangays by providing them opportunities to participate actively in the implementation of national programs and projects, by sharing in the responsibility of management and maintenance of the ecological balance, Bohol adopted a multi-sectoral CLEC, which plugged marine law implementation loopholes.

“There were times when national agencies separately operate to implement marine protection laws, while they do have the resources, they too sometimes fall into the trap of politics, especially when apprehending illegal fishers who are also campaign leaders of local politicians,” shared a former maritime police officer.

A case shared during a law enforcement summit years back detail how apprehending bantay dagat fish wardens, operating on their own, get entangled with a commercial fisher with fishers armed to the teeth.

The decision to unify a multi sectoral coastal law enforcement team appealed generally well to fish wardens who in their operations now, are joined by representatives of the Philippine National Police like the station commander, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Justice, Philippine Coast Guard, Maritime Police, National Bureau of Investigation, lawyers, Provincial Agriculture, local officials, non government organizations and even other sectors.

“It is always easy to talk your way out of an apprehension with just a few people, or bribe your way out of the mess, but with a multi-sectoral and inter-town clustered council, it is not going to be easy,” an environmental lawyer who joined the apprehending party added.

The most common issue is when poaching fishermen from another town are chased by marine law enforcers. As soon as they cross town boundaries, fish wardens lose the authority over the jurisdiction, that with the CLEC, the cluster town representatives tend to retain jurisdiction because representatives of the next town is also among the boarding party.

Section 5 of the new Executive Order names 8 CLEC Clusters in Bohol tasked to implement the program. They are Tagbilaran City for Cluster 1, Cortes, Maribojoc, Loon, and Calape for Cluster 2, Tubigon, Clarin, Inabanga and Buenavista for Cluster 3.

Cluster 4 includes Getafe, Talibon, Trinidad, Bien Unido and President Carlos P. Garcia, while Cluster 5 includes Ubay, Mabini and Candijay and Cluster 6 are Anda, Guindulman, Duero and Jagna.

Cluster 7 has Valencia, Garcia Hernandez, Dimiao and Lila and Cluster 8 has Loat, Alburquerque, Baclayon, Panglao and Dauis.

Each of these clusters are headed by a cluster chairperson and its members include mayors of the member towns, vice mayors, SB chairs on Agriculture, SB Chairs on Environment, municipal agriculturists, MENRO, coastal resource management officers of each town, fishery technicians, information officers, Police Environment Officers, BFAR, DENR Penro, PCG, PNP Maritime Group, Legal Officer, NGO representative, MFARMC chairs, coastal barangay captains, SK chairs, Purok leaders in coastal barangays, tanods and POs or marine protected area management council representative. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)

SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, TOURISM. Bohol Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado discusses with British Ambassador to the Philippines Laure Beaufils possible areas of cooperation between the two states in terms of environment protection, resource management and sustainable tourism, even as the governor signed Executive Order No. 47 which reconstitutes in the CLEC its coastal protection and monitoring program. With the governor and the ambassador is provincial Administrator Asteria Caberte and Bohol Provincial Environment Management Officers. (rahc/PIA_7/Bohol)