22 fishermen in Recto Bank incident get assistance from PHL gov’t

After almost losing their lives when a Chinese vessel rammed their fishing boat in West Philippine Sea’s Recto Bank on June 9, the 22 fishermen have received assistance in cash and in kind from the government, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said in a Facebook post late Wednesday.

“The fishermen received assistance on orders of President Rody Duterte from three agencies of government—the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and Department of Energy whose Secretary is the Cabinet Officer for the MIMAROPA Region,” Piñol noted.

The fishermen received a total of P45,000 each as well as boats, rice, scholarships for their children and livelihood opportunities .

Piñol noted the breakdown of the assistance as follows:

• 12 fiberglass fishing boats with engine and fishing gears and one sack of rice each from the DA Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR)

• P25,000 each in emergency cash assistance from the DA Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC)

• P10,000 cash each, scholarships for their children and two food packs each from the DSWD

• P10,000 cash each from Secretary Cusi of DOE and CORDS Region IV-B

• Livelihood projects from the DA Regional Office and DA BFAR MIMAROPA

The owner of the damaged fishing boat will also get government funds to help her repair the fishing boat and recover her losses.

On June 9, the Chinese fishing boat Yuemaobinyu 42212 that rammed and damaged the FB Gem-Vir 1, but not help the Filipino fishermen.

It sparked a public outcry from various sectors in the Philippines, since the Chinese crew did not help the Filipinos at sea.

China branded the incident as an accident.

During the last Cabinet Economic and Security Clusters Committee meeting last Monday, the DA was tasked to lead a government group to assist the fishermen who figured in the Recto Bank maritime incident, Piñol said. —VDS, GMA News