P15,000 monthly sought for fishers hit by oil spill

Fishers’ group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas Pamalakaya) yesterday pushed for P15,000 in monthly subsidy for each fisherman displaced by the sinking of oil tankers in Bataan.

- BELLA CARIASO

Pamalakaya vice chairman Ronnel Arambulo made the call after the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) denied an appeal to lift the fishing ban imposed on eight municipalities in Cavite.

"The amount (P15,000) is based on the average income of a small fisherman every month," Arambulo said.

However, Arnel de Mesa, spokesman for the Department of Agriculture, said the DA has no budget to fund the P15,000 monthly subsidy for fishermen, unless it is part of the General Appropriations Act.