Dear Jhon B
I have been forwarded the discussions in the forum. Let me address first the pricing issue. Pricing is not the major issue. When it comes to delivery and accepting fish an entire system comes into play. That is where the win or lose situation for ornamental fish collectors will highly depend on. The race to keep ahead of being perpetually in debt and pangs of hunger pushes the collector to the brink. It does not matter whether a collector uses nets or not. There is not distinction.
The second thing is order system (over collection???): Show me who is following the order system right now, exporter and collectors alike. Again several factors will influence collectors from following the order system or not. Basic is trying to catch up with his break-even point with fingers cross and when a collectors goes beyond this it is as if he won a lottery. On the exporter side his volume where his shipment relies on again dictates his break-even and net income although there are several fall back arrangements an exporter can depend on to prevent red ink in his ledger. Sorry to say that CAMPs as it is and MPAs in developing countries per say will never work unless several situations are address. What we were trying to do is apply a band aid on a deep wound. I have been trying to say this over and over again that I sound like a broken record.
Third Collection in illegal areas?: Yes who told you this? As far as I know in the areas I trained collectors to use nets long before MAC like Busuanga, Palawan got their permit from their Municipality or local government. I had it renewed again for them when MAC came in. What I did not want until last year was the use of hookah. Their municipality approved hookah use last year. What I did was made some polices and agreement with the collectors for the use of hookah in that area. Bagac, Bataan had a ban on ornamental. It was lifted with my suggestion that they be given 6 months to prove that even dynamite fishing can be prevented by the collectors being more vigilant, and prevent non residents from collecting in their sites. They have been successful in doing both but again everybody must remember that each place has a unique or slightly different situation. Replication in other areas as what others think is not that easy if a person does not understand all the factors, drives and motivation that influences peculiar and different situations.
Fourth: I want to correct an impression. I am not Roger Hernandez’s business adviser. He thinks for himself. I have not meddled in any of his decisions. I would not try. True pre Harribon days I was the one who gave him and his groups nets. He has stack to nets since that time and had a chance to work in Hawaii with his group. One of them remained in Hawaii and is still a collector up to now. He was transferred to New York where he help ran a facility receiving shipments packing and delivering them to other states. So he knows the other side that is why he is more vocal. That is why he protested against the system, and question the method of certifying exporters and collectors. He questioned the expertise of the certifier too. His adviser as well as other full time highly dependent net collectors is Mr. Pedro Aguillon who retired early this year as the fisheries officer known as head of fisheries of the Province of Zambales. Mr. Agauillon is the present adviser and consultant of the Fisheries Aquatic Management Council created by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. He use to work for BFAR assigned in different parts of the country until he was transferred to the province of Zambales. He knows the fisheries laws and administrative orders like the palm of his hand, a lot about Bohol and Cebu during his BFAR days and the trade as a whole on this side.
I will address other matters later. Let us talk about the non-MAC members that you say has no rights at all for not being certified.
Ferdinand Cruz
I have been forwarded the discussions in the forum. Let me address first the pricing issue. Pricing is not the major issue. When it comes to delivery and accepting fish an entire system comes into play. That is where the win or lose situation for ornamental fish collectors will highly depend on. The race to keep ahead of being perpetually in debt and pangs of hunger pushes the collector to the brink. It does not matter whether a collector uses nets or not. There is not distinction.
The second thing is order system (over collection???): Show me who is following the order system right now, exporter and collectors alike. Again several factors will influence collectors from following the order system or not. Basic is trying to catch up with his break-even point with fingers cross and when a collectors goes beyond this it is as if he won a lottery. On the exporter side his volume where his shipment relies on again dictates his break-even and net income although there are several fall back arrangements an exporter can depend on to prevent red ink in his ledger. Sorry to say that CAMPs as it is and MPAs in developing countries per say will never work unless several situations are address. What we were trying to do is apply a band aid on a deep wound. I have been trying to say this over and over again that I sound like a broken record.
Third Collection in illegal areas?: Yes who told you this? As far as I know in the areas I trained collectors to use nets long before MAC like Busuanga, Palawan got their permit from their Municipality or local government. I had it renewed again for them when MAC came in. What I did not want until last year was the use of hookah. Their municipality approved hookah use last year. What I did was made some polices and agreement with the collectors for the use of hookah in that area. Bagac, Bataan had a ban on ornamental. It was lifted with my suggestion that they be given 6 months to prove that even dynamite fishing can be prevented by the collectors being more vigilant, and prevent non residents from collecting in their sites. They have been successful in doing both but again everybody must remember that each place has a unique or slightly different situation. Replication in other areas as what others think is not that easy if a person does not understand all the factors, drives and motivation that influences peculiar and different situations.
Fourth: I want to correct an impression. I am not Roger Hernandez’s business adviser. He thinks for himself. I have not meddled in any of his decisions. I would not try. True pre Harribon days I was the one who gave him and his groups nets. He has stack to nets since that time and had a chance to work in Hawaii with his group. One of them remained in Hawaii and is still a collector up to now. He was transferred to New York where he help ran a facility receiving shipments packing and delivering them to other states. So he knows the other side that is why he is more vocal. That is why he protested against the system, and question the method of certifying exporters and collectors. He questioned the expertise of the certifier too. His adviser as well as other full time highly dependent net collectors is Mr. Pedro Aguillon who retired early this year as the fisheries officer known as head of fisheries of the Province of Zambales. Mr. Agauillon is the present adviser and consultant of the Fisheries Aquatic Management Council created by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. He use to work for BFAR assigned in different parts of the country until he was transferred to the province of Zambales. He knows the fisheries laws and administrative orders like the palm of his hand, a lot about Bohol and Cebu during his BFAR days and the trade as a whole on this side.
I will address other matters later. Let us talk about the non-MAC members that you say has no rights at all for not being certified.
Ferdinand Cruz
