A group of boat operators in Bais City and in the town of Manjuyod are in a dispute with the barangay chairwoman of Katakgahan in Bais City, concerning the legality of their operations catering to dolphin and whale watching tours in the Tañon Strait.
The barangay chairwoman, Cristita Pateño, wrote President Duterte to rid Tañon Strait of unregistered boats engaged in dolphin and whale watching tours.
In her letter dated March 20, a copy of which was obtained by MetroPost, Pateño acknowledged that she was also an operator of three pumpboats engaged in dolphin and whale watching tours.
She said that while all her pumpboats belonging to the M/V Ma. Cristy Shipping Lines are all registered and licensed by the Maritime Industry Authority, there are about 50 unregistered pumpboats that are not registered.
She said the ongoing operations of unregistered pumpboats is a cause of chaos between the licensed and unlicensed boat operators.
Pateño said she has verbally reported this to the Dumaguete Coast Guard Station and the Marina office in Dumaguete but no action was taken by the offices.
The complaint was endorsed by the Office of the President to the Coast Guard, resulting in the crackdown late last month on unregistered tourist boats.
Not to be outdone, a group called the Boat Operators Association for Tourism Services (BOATS), headed by its president, Ricky Soler and chairman, Matusalem Cabanag, has also written the President to belie the assertions of Pateño.
They said that all the three boats of Pateño have expired licenses. They said Pateño does not only have three boats but that she has many other boats, all unregistered.
The group also said that Pateño had, for a long time now, been trying to monopoloze the dolphin and whale watching tours in Bais City.
They questioned Pateño’s use of government facilities such as the barangay vehicle, for her personal business transactions, and asked if she has been paying the proper taxes for her operations.
They said the letter of Pateño to the President was misleading, which has resulted in serious repercussions for the dolphin and whale watching tour operations.
The BOATS asked Duterte for an amnesty for all delinquent boats that have been previously registered, for a moratorium on the implementation of the no-registration no-sail policy, and to grant them temporary conditional permits to operate.
They also asked the President for mobile registration in Bais City under the Pro-Poor Program to save their members from having to go all the way to the Marina office in Cebu. (AP)
