Bohol DA tienda: stabilizing

prices by market-matching 

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, August 7 (PIA)—Over anything else, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) says Bohol’s Fish Market or commonly called tienda here, is not much of a two-day fish selling event; it is more of providing market matching opportunities for suppliers from the regions and local distributors. 

BFAR fishery regulations officer Wilma Paller shared this at the Kapihan sa PIA, amidst early criticisms that the Department of Agriculture measure to bring down the price of fish is nothing but a palliative flash bang and then sizzle. 

Totally split over the seemingly wayward price of fish despite sitting right smack in the middle of a vast sea resource that has been tagged as the biodiversity capital of the world, Boholanos have pleaded for local government leaders to put in measures to regulate prices, while others who think they could offend local leaders took to their silence. 

When the local authorities scampered to offer solutions, the government in the mean time, put up fishing interventions. 

Both BFAR and the Department of Agriculture (DA) dove into their assisted people’s organizations, released nets, fishing gears, and refrigerated vans to makes sure cheaper fish from the other side of Bohol gets to Tagbilaran markets. 

Beyond meetings and monitoring by local authorities, nothing happened, pointed out a fish consumer who has to pay the over-price even if milkfish is never really that kind of fish to go expensive. 

As this scourge continued and Boholanos took to the local radio air lanes, the DA secretary, who has been frequenting Bohol to lay down the foundations of a dream to make Bohol the dairy capital in the country did not miss the complaints. 

In one of his recent Bohol sorties, DA Secretary Emmanuel Piñol shared the national government’s plan to flood Bohol with fish to stabilize the prices. 

Sketchy reports coming out, revealed that Pinol accordingly promised to bring fish from Zamboanga to Bohol through the tienda. 

Over this, several critics accused Piñol of “epal,” citing that the fish market which would be for a few days, would not be able to solve the problem. 

But, over Kapihan sa PIA, Paller, who is based at the BFAR regional office explained that it is not just Zamboanga fish supply coming in but from several regions more. 

Paller enumerated fish supply from region 5, 6, 7 (like Cebu, Negros and Siquijor), Region 8, 9, 10, 12, 13 and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). 

On the other hand, BFAR information officer Alma Saavedra added that Bohol Fish Market is just one of the many previous fish market interventions that the DA has done. 

Similar markets have accordingly been done in Manila, Laguna and several areas more, but it is not just the supply and the artificial selling that the government brings. 

“We bring it to areas because we are bringing bulk fish suppliers who would be introduced to local suppliers and possibly strike deals for sustained supply of fish,” Saavedra explained. 

The fish that the regions bring are accordingly diverse in kind: from the low cost common fishes like the mackerel and sardines to the top quality groupers, malasugue, and the marlins, BFAR shared. 

The agreement, according to the DA sources bared that common fish are sold to local fish dealers at the pier, and they bring this supply to the Agricultural Promotions Center (APC) grounds for the tow day market event August 16-17. 

Local dealers buy these common kitchen table fish at P20.00 over the origin’s selling price, that if at the source, the fish sells at P40.00 a kilo, the dealers here buy them at P60 and then sell them at a small profit, Saavedra shared. 

While each supplier can buy as much, once he sells the fish, a buyer can only get a maximum of 5 kilos, this is to assure that nobody buys and hoards fish, which could defeat the purpose of the fish market. 

For class a fish, the agreed buying from the suppliers is P50.00 more. 

At that rate, a malasugue, which sells at P140 would now be available for Boholanos at P190 to P220, which is still cheap compared to the present selling rate of P350 a kilo. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol) 

MARKET MATCHING, and not just plain and simple artificially spiking the local supply of fish, explains the BFAR on the DA’s plan to bring here next week fish from nearby regions to cure the problem of expensive fish here. (PIA-7/Bohol)

Chatto tells visiting MMDRRMC:

No substitute for preparedness

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, August 6 (PIA)—“There is no substitute for preparedness.”

Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto reminded this to the members of the Metro Manila Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Councils (MMDRRMC), who came to Cebu and Bohol to learn of the systems that were in place that contributed to the fast post disaster response and relief operations after the triple calamities that hit the region between 2013 to 2014.

While the earthquake of 2013 was a disaster of great magnitude for Bohol, Gov Chatto admitted there were several opportunities of learning from it.

Meeting the MMDRRMC on a slightly different circumstance, the governor offered some programs which contribute to the quick response in Bohol.

A day after the strong earthquake that hit Bohol in 2013, a team from the MMRDDMC arrived in Bohol to help the province conduct rescue, retrieval and relief operations.

The MMDRRMC, composed of the 16 cities and the lone municipality of Pateros, in the greater Metro manila Region, along with the Office of the Civil Defense, the Department of Interior and Local Government and other key government disaster response and relief agencies came on a learning visit to find best practices in the local governments of Cebu City and Province as well as Tagbilaran City and Bohol province.

The move to learn is prompted by the intent of putting in place the systems that would help Metro Manila cope with the impending threat of a potentially devastating earthquake rooted from the West Marikina Valley Fault.

Also called the Big One, the earthquake when it would happen, has been forecast to cause a lot of lives and damage to the country’s most populated region.

And to mitigate its impacts to human lives and built infrastructure in Metro Manila, local councils have been conducting earthquake drills and retrofitting their built-infrastructure so it could stand a better chance against the huge tremblor, if it comes.

Apart from the preparations, the MMDRRMC team led by Metro Manila Development Authority Amante Salvador, Office of the Civil Defense National Capital Region Shelby Cruz, and DILG NCR Elsi Castillo came to Bohol on their second and third day of visit in the Visayas to pick on local response measures and best practices.

While the MMDRRMC team represented by the MMDA immediately arrived in Bohol a day after the October 15 2013 7.2 magnitude earthquake, the team saw how fast and organized their deployment with a local disaster emergency team was.

The MMDRRMC also reported to their counterparts in Manila the efficiency and acquired skill of Bohol’s Telephone and Radio Systems Integrated Emergency Response 117, or TaRSIER in their quick response.

According to the governor, a huge help in the quick disaster response the clustering approach in the local development planning and the establishment of the TaRSIER 117 a month before the earthquake.

He said that time, TaRSIER has completed a standardized training module and eight teams have been going around Bohol to conduct disaster response training.

The TaRSIER 117, already present in town clusters centered in Ubay, Jagna, Tagbilaran and other expansion areas like Carmen and Loon, is fast becoming as a byword in emergency response in Bohol and it sits well with investors, he beamed to the visiting team gathered inside the Governor’s Mansion August 4.

But, the governor added, even with the TaRSIER, it would not have been just as efficient of not the setting up of the purok system.

Born for the inherent bayanihan spirit which is still evident in Bohol as also manifested during its tough times, the Purok Power Movement rose as a systemic mechanism to hail and set up the government’s channel of services to the grassroots.

The bayanihan spirit was the foundation, claimed the governor who is also tagged for bringing the PPM as a potent tool against local insurgency.

With Bohol, it worked, meaning the PPM and bayanihan, but he reminded the visitors: it might not work in a metropolis.

The PPM, he claimed has mobilized a channel that could easily accept government help, start local discussions and gather feedback to evaluate effectiveness of programs.

Earning praises for the orchestrated disaster response and the quick rehabilitation in Bohol, the governor, who also served as a congressional representative that most of this, he credits to the Boholanos.

Over attempts to replicate everything Bhol did for a Manila response, Chatto commented: “Do not attempt to copy the whole thing.”

“Every place has a different experience, you may copy some of the parts,” but advised further: “find different modalities that suit your needs, and work on it.”

As always, the governor emphasized, it is always better to have something to work on.

Over-all, MMDRRMC believes copying and replicating some of the best practices in Bohol, Cebu and Tagbilaran City would greatly enhance knowledge and putting in place the right preparations that suit the communities.

For an eventuality of the Big One, Bohol’s TaRSIER has been tapped for rescue, relief in the north quadrant and based at the operations Center to be set up at the Philippine Veterans Hospital.

And like a brother, Bohol has also committed to be there for any LGU that needs help, sending aid and men like it did with Tacloban. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)

MIRRORING. Governor Edgar Chatto is seen in the mirror as he shared Bohol’s earthquake response during a learning visit by the Metro Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to help them prepare better for the eventuality of the Big One.  Metro Manila disaster team intends to mirror some of Bohol’s best practices in rescue, response and rehabilitation. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)