There are VULGAR signs of corruption in the fish kill that has struck Batangas. Corruption signs which are being overlooked, if not DELIBERATELY IGNORED.
Demolition of ILLEGAL FISHPENS, which authorities say is one of the causes of the fish kill, in Kakiputan Bay (I hope I got it right) is ongoing.
That means the illegal fishpens have been there for quite a while. So WHO AUTHORIZED their installation in the first place, and in exchange for what?
Remember guys, nobody tolerates an ILLEGALITY for FREE.
Since the illegal fishpens had been there since God knows when, that means they were UNTOUCHABLE until the fish kill. So HOW FAR and HOW HIGH did the protection of these unlawful structures go?
The illegal fishpens are VERY VISIBLE STRUCTURES.
Don’t tell me local officials and national government personnel detailed in the area, like those from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), simply didn’t bother to conduct even routine inspections so the illegal fishpens went UNNOTICED for so long.
If they’ll say that’s the case, then somebody had better haul them off to the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Ombudsman, the NBI and other agencies for the TOUGHEST QUESTIONING POSSIBLE.
If they’ll say they did act against illegal fishpens, did they ever take any legal action against the owners? Proof, please.
This is vital, boys and girls, because the BFAR officer for Batangas declared in earlier news reports that the Batangas provincial government regularly tears down illegal fishpens.
And yet, there are still a lot in Kakiputan Bay as shown on television news.
Even if the Batangas BFAR officer’s claim is true, then how come owners of illegal fishpens seem UNSTOPPABLE in their unlawful trade?
The illegality of the fishpens has been established.
But curiously, not one owner has been identified and reported charged, or even investigated. This despite the enormity of the fish kill and the dangers it can bring to the health of consumers.
Anybody correct me if I’m wrong.
WHAT makes the names of the OWNERS of the illegal fishpens so special and confidential?
Let’s keep an eye on this issue 24 hours a day, boys and girls. We all eat seafood and items coming from areas struck by the fish kill can send us either to the hospital, or to the grave.
Unless we, especially the residents of fish kill areas, start making a lot of noise before our lawmakers and national and local government officials, illegal fishpens WILL NEVER BE WIPED OUT.
Whoever refuses to act is the one YOU SHOULD NOT VOTE FOR in 2013 or EXPOSE TO MEDIA.
In the meantime, the Ombudsman, the BIR and any other agency had better start a lifestyle check and thorough review of the statements of assets and liabilities of government officials and personnel in fish kill areas. 30
The greed of these illegal fishpen owners together with their coddlers (Local and National government officials) are so insatiable. Instead of having these dead fishes fed to the crocodiles, why not just throw these people into the crocs. But wait, we might just be putting them where they really belong...
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