Fishermen also need aid from drought

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines – Even fisherfolk are not spared from the drought induced by El Niño.

The Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) yesterday urged the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to immediately release its P673-million calamity fund for drought-stricken fisherfolk in the country.

“The fisherfolk are now suffering from diminishing catch due to the dry spell,” Pamalakaya said, as it lashed at BFAR for its alleged “failure to immediately provide adequate relief and assistance to them.”

Pamalakaya secretary general Romy Antazo said that since the onset of El Niño, a fisherman’s catch has declined from the usual 10 to 15 kilos to only about three kilos. “At times,” he added, “there’s only an empty net to bring home.”

“Fishing during El Niño is more difficult than usual because fish and other marine species migrate and move to deep waters to find cooler temperature. Worse, the El Niño triggers ecological disturbances resulting in massive fish kills and then there is also the problem of red tide,” he explained.

He said “El Niño starves rural  people, especially the fisherfolk and farmers as they are the frontline casualties of this prolonged dry spell.”