IBP seeks more time to talk to Palawan, Zambales fishermen

MANILA, Philippines — The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) yesterday asked the Supreme Court (SC) to grant them more time to confer with the fishermen from Zambales and Palawan who are their clients in the petition for a writ of kalikasan.

IBP national president Domingo Egon Cayosa said they needed to meet with the fishermen so they could properly respond to the claims made by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) that 19 of the fishermen withdrew as petitioners in the case.

“Considering the new allegations by the Office of the Solicitor General, the handling lawyers will request the Supreme Court for time to confer with the fishermen in Zambales and in Palawan so that they can more appropriately act on the developments in the case,” said Cayosa in a one-page statement. 

Cayosa said their organization “advocates for the enforcement of environmental laws, protection of the rights and welfare of fisherfolk and securing the territory and patrimony of our country in the West Philippine Sea.”

He gave assurance that the “IBP stands firmly with the fishermen, IBP chapters and the lawyers involved in the petition for a Writ of Kalikasan filed before the Supreme Court.”

Last Tuesday, during the oral arguments, the OSG moved for the withdrawal of the petition after manifesting before the high court that the IBP filed the petition without obtaining the consent and knowledge of the fishermen from Palawan and Zambales, who were named petitioners in the case. 

Solicitor General Jose Calida said the case should be dismissed because by losing the petitioners, it no longer has the legal standing to pursue the case.

Calida also presented a video interview of the fishermen. The group’s leaders, Monico Abogado and Roberto Asiado, said in their respective affidavits that they were “deceived” into signing the petition.

The SC, as a whole, unanimously decided to suspend the oral arguments and gave the parties time to file a joint motion.