Romblon, Navotas officials set fish-eating events

MANILA, Philippines - After an endosulfan scare affected the fish industry, officials in Romblon province and Navotas City have arranged "fish-eating" events to assure the public their fish are safe to eat. Romblon Governor Natalio Beltran III said Wednesday they are organizing a fish-eating event to counter fears that fish from there are contaminated with endosulfan, a toxic pesticide. "Yung isda dito kahit ang presyo P10-20 kada kilo, ayaw patulan. Ang hirap ipaliwanag sa namimili yan. Kaya sama-sama kaming local officials, congressman, kakain ng isda at ilalabas namin sa pahayagan (Fish here are already selling for as low as P10 to 20 per kilo but no one's buying. It's so hard to explain the situation to them. So we local officials are going to get together and eat fish for media consumption, just to assure the public our fish are safe to eat)," Beltran said in an interview on dzXL radio. In Navotas City where a fish port has suffered dwindling sales in past days, dzXL reported that officials led by Mayor Tobias Tiangco were to hold a fish-eating event at noon. Expected to join the event are representatives from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), the report said. Earlier, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said in a predawn interview on dzXL that the endosulfan-triggered fishing ban on Romblon is crippling the lives of residents there. Yap said this has prompted him to consider recommending at least a partial lifting of the ban. Yap saw for himself since Tuesday evening the situation of residents on Sibuyan Island, near the site of the capsizing. "Wala kaming nakitang contamination sa area na ito. Ang tao kailangan kumain dito (We see no contamination in this part of the area. And people do need to eat)," Yap said in an interview on dzXL radio. As of Wednesday morning, Yap said areas like Odiongan town do not show any symptom of endosulfan contamination, yet local fishermen suffer because of the ban. Citing his initial findings since Tuesday night, Yap said much of Sibuyan Island does not show any sign of contamination from endosulfan. "Dapat ma-release yan (It should be released from the ban) ... This is too far away," he said of some areas in the province. He said the economic impact of the ban was such that even with the National Food Authority (NFA) flooding the market with rice, people cannot avail of it as they have no money. On orders of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Yap stayed behind at Romblon Tuesday after joining Mrs Arroyo and Cabinet members in attending a Mass for victims of the MV Princess of the Stars tragedy. "Ang NFA dito nagbobomba ng bigas walang bumibili dahil walang pera ang tao dahil ang buong ekonomiya ng Romblon depende sa fishing industry (The NFA here is flooding the market with rice but no one can avail of it because they have no money. We have to remember that Romblon's economy is heavily dependent on the fishing industry)," he said. In the meantime, he said he has called for trucks to bring canned goods to the area, and for the NFA to give away rice. He also said farmers will get rice seeds. "Utos ng pangulo mag-abot na tayo ng relief (The president ordered immediate relief for the residents)," he said. - GMANews.TV