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Thursday, March 30, 2006
City Council to probe Task Force Snapper after two weeks
By Kathy Villalon Cinco and Jay Dooma Balnig
FOUR committees of the City Council are set to investigate the fish controversies hounding the City Agriculturist Office and its group, Task Force Snapper.
Said controversies are the alleged misdistribution of the fishes seized from F/B Three Sisters and the conflicting findings of the TFS and that of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (Bfar) as to whether the fishes taken from F/B Elmer 2 were caught through blasting or not.
According to the CAO, the fishes were positive of blasting, but the Bfar said, no.
The committees that will merge for this probe are the Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources headed by Councilor Ely Estante; Committee on Environment headed by Councilor Perla Zulueta; Committee on Barangay Affairs headed by Councilor Marietta Orleans and Committee on Good Government headed by Councilor Joe Espinosa III.
However, being a member of TFS himself, Estante was urged by committee vice chairman Eduardo Penaredondo to inhibit himself from the investigation. Estante agreed to this but offered to help in the investigation if necessary.
"We will investigate the administrative aspect of the issues, so that incidents like these won't happen again. We'll try to see if the TFS was amiss in their responsibilities. This way, we could lay down the proper procedure. We also want that any recipient or the public should be made aware that if a case against the owner of the fish will not prosper; that is, if they're found to have caught the fish legally, the former would agree to pay for the fish that was given to them," Penaredondo said.
Another probe
Earlier, Chief City Prosecutor Efraim Baldago directed members of TFS to submit their report on how they distributed the volumes of fishes confiscated from Three Sisters last March 14.
The inventory came after the expose over the radio stating that several village heads in various areas in Iloilo City got their share of various species of fishes from Three Sisters.
The task force headed by CAO's Jose Parrenas failed to liquidate the disposal of fish amounting to around 4,000 kilos.
The prosecutor issued clearance for the disposal of subject fishes to charitable and penal institutions, but during the check at the records of the task force, it was discovered that village heads of Cochero, Molo, South San Jose, Molo, Tacas, Jaro and several others were the recipients.
Baldago who issued the said clearance strictly imposed to the task force the proper observance of Sec. 3, FAO No. 206 series of 2001 of Department of Agriculture circular under Republic Act 8550 or the national fishery code of the Philippines.
On the said law, only charitable and penal institutions are entitled as recipients for the said proceeds from confiscated fishes.
Case filed
Lawyer Jose Lira, counsel for the fish owner and pump boat operator filed a criminal and administrative case against the task force which composed of City Agriculture, PNP Maritime Command, Philippine Coast Guard and others.
Several recipients complained that the reports of task force on the liquidation initially submitted to the City Prosecutor's Office is falsified.
It was listed in the report of task force that Crisis Management under Remy Bragacia in Iloilo City Hall received 421 kilos of fishes from the task force as part of said confiscated items from Three Sisters.
But during an interview with Crisis Management chief Jose Papa and Bragancia itself, they claimed the actual volume of fish they received from the task force is 21 kilos and not 421 kilos.
It was also discovered that the original figure in promissory note executed by the Icer is 21 kilos but it was altered into 421, Bragancia said during a radio interview.
Meanwhile, Barangay chief Eliserio Villanueva of San Jose, Molo denied allegations that he sold the fish that was given to him by the TFS.
He admitted though that he made a joke about telling his constituents that he's selling the said fishes seized from Three Sisters. "But the truth is, I did not sell them. I gave them to my constituents," he said.
(March 30, 2006 issue)
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