Pinuri ni House Ways and Means Chair Joey Sarte Salceda ang administrasyon ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. sa mabilis at mahusay na pagtugon nito sa Mindoro oil spill. 

Inanunsyo kamakailan ng Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources na ang tubig sa paligid ng isla ng Mindoro ay idineklara na “within Class SC standard” at ngayon ay malaya na sa “PAH (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) from demersal and pelagic species.” Ang klasipikasyong ito ay nag-udyok sa pamahalaan ng Oriental Mindoro na muling buksan ang mga katubigan nito sa pangingisda.

“The quick and drama-free response, which coordinated government efforts and kept people’s livelihoods afloat in the meantime shows this government’s commitment to ecology and to tourism, considering that the area is a tourism star and a biodiversity hotspot,” pahayag ni Salceda.

Aniya, kilala ang Mindoro bilang isang biodiversity hotspot, kung saan ang Verde Island Passage ang sentro ng marine biodiversity sa mundo.

“… so we should not be underestimating the scale of this crisis or the significance of the Marcos administration’s response,” sabi pa ng Albay 2nd District representative. 

“Like most of the best accomplishments of this administration, it’s under-the-radar and without much fanfare.”

Ipinaabot din niya ang pagbati sa iba’t ibang ahensya ng gobyerno tumugon sa krisis, kabilang ang Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Bureau of Fire Protection, Philippine National Police, Philippine Coast Guard-Southern Tagalog unit, Southern Forces of the Philippines unit, at Southern Forces of the Philippines. 

Bukod pa rito, kinilala ni Salceda ang Department of Tourism sa pagsisikap nito na protektahan ang mga malinis na dalampasigan ng bansa mula sa mga masasamang epekto ng oil spill.

“Of course, more work needs to be done to ensure that the waters are completely clear of oil spilled, and to compensate those affected, especially in the fishing industry,” aniya, at tiniyak sa administrasyon na patuloy na makikipagtulungan ang Kongreso sa clearing operations.

Binigyang-diin ng mambabatas na si Speaker Martin Romualdez ay kabilang sa mga unang nagbigay ng tulong pinansyal sa mga apektadong mangingisda.

Dagdag niya “the incident was also a wake-up call about just how economically-important and ecologically-fragile the area is. The region is home to some of our best beaches, Puerto Galera and El Nido included. We need to protect these before we have a Boracay situation where we need to lock the beaches down for rehabilitation.”

“Our tourism is strongly ecology-dependent. I hope part of the Love the Philippines campaign of Secretary Frasco will be concrete actions to love and take care of our beaches and eco-tourism destinations before it’s too late.”

Photo credit: Office of Rep. Joey Salceda