Last week, officials of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources spoke about their many plans to put up various types of fish shelter, floating fish farms at sea, cold storage plants and better boats for fisherfolk. To people who have only heard about these things recently, it might sound like good ideas to help improve fish catch and help the fisherfolk. But the truth of the matter is that it’s nothing new.
From the time of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. to the present time of Ferdinand Marcos Jr. the Philippines has been setting up such projects all over the country. In fact, Filipino experts were ahead of the pack in developing breeding farms for Sabalo or giant salt water bangus in Pangasinan. Back in the late 80’s there was the TLRC or Technology Livelihood Resource Center that regularly conducted paid seminars where I enrolled to learn about tilapia raising, lapu-lapu raising in floating fish cages, crab fattening and basic fiberglass know-how.
There is really nothing earth shaking or new. What is quite obvious is that fisheries and aquatic-related programs seem to remain in the incubation period, pilot program or are stunted. One would think that after 40 years, every coastal barangay should already have established fisheries facilities, starting with fresh or salt water tilapia farms where you can use part of the produce as feed when you set up a floating cage/farm for lapu-lapu, apahap or sea bass, or samaral. With the presence of established floating fish cages you would then have a stable and predictable supply of four different fish species which would justify or naturally create a fish buying station. The floating fish cage would consequently be fish shelters much better than the traditional payaws because the fish cages provide incidental feeds passing through the nets. The fact that other countries are already operating tuna and salmon cages even on an experimental basis tells us that the potential is so great.
During my time in Palawan in 1991, we tried our hand at operating a floating cage for lapu-lapu and after many months I learned that you could purchase lapu-lapu fingerling, apahap or sea bass, jack or talakitok and a type of rabbit fish for sea farming in an office along Pasong Tamo Extension. Someone once told me that they are already raising lapu-lapu and other types of marine fish indoors in buildings in Taiwan and were very successful using computers and related technology. Just for the heck of it, I tried to do it “mano-mano” Pinoy style, starting with 50 pieces of fingerlings that I raised in a 2,000-gallon marine tank in my house in Barrio Kapitolyo, Pasig City! I only managed to raise five pieces to more than 3 kilos each and only because I was not strictly doing what needed to be done, but I saw that it could be done if it was done in a better location, with high tech facility and expertise.
Take, for instance, the crab fattening technology. I once visited an honest to goodness high tech crab fattening farm in Zamboanga where they kept several hundred crabs in individual PVC boxes with sprinklers and lighting programed to match or simulate high tides and low tides and fed individually to achieve the fastest and highest food conversion ratio. The facility also had lobsters and because of their efficiency and demand, the crabs were all for export. Essentially, all it took was a program and basic equipment that DOST can make locally.
The fact is, Filipino fisherfolk should not have to go out to open sea to catch fish if the BFAR and DILG were required by law and by the President to establish floating fish farms everywhere possible along the country’s coastlines and that these should continually expand or grow in the number of units until a sustainable number is achieved as a component of our food security program. Unless this is done by members of Congress and the executive, such programs will never get priority. Much of the set up and investments are undertaken by private individuals and if there is one operated by government it is because a congressman wanted it or a grant was made available by a foreign government.
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One very well-known and respected multi-industry leader I know personally was asked how can PBBM do things differently in managing senior government executives. The answer was plain and simple: Give every Cabinet member specific quotas or targets; whether it’s the GDP, inflation, unemployment, production outputs, revenue collections, etc. Every Cabinet member should have quarterly and year-end targets that are not under-estimated or inflated. With so many problems, solutions and options on the table, the President has to focus on what is essential and closest to the needs of the people as well as the quickest to address and harvest results from. He should therefore gather his team and give each of them their specific quota or target, then ask them to sign on the dotted line of their masterpiece. If they hit their targets, great! If they don’t, they should be honorable enough to acknowledge their failure and leave.
This is not harsh because this is how things are done inside private companies and major corporations where they operate with private funds or other people’s money. The CEO or the Board will not waste one minute or one peso more before firing you if they determine that you are incapable of achieving goals or desired results. It’s nothing personal, it’s the bottom line in limiting the potential loss or missed opportunities. Why should the 2 to 3 million Filipino salaried taxpayers not require or demand the same rules and expectations from our government officials and employees?
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