Different groups of fishermen began dismantling their new find as well as the 150-meter (Sto. Rosario) and700-meter dredge floaters (San Agustin, also in iba) discovered last July 24.
“Pinaghihiwalay-hiwalay namin para ma-safety at mailagay sa maayos na lugar. Sana, matapos naming ma-dismantle, bigyan kami ng papeles na talagang sa amin na ito,” said fisherman Artemio Liomo.
Raul Calimlim, barangay chairman of Sto. Rosario in Iba said the dismantled dredge floaters will be placed in a sort of yard near the sea. He said that Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane wants the fishermen to benefit from their find but have to follow certain processes.
“Whoever the owner is, is given 60 days to claim the items and if no one claims it, it will be auctioned off and the proceeds given to the fishermen, barangay and municipality. We, however, still do not know the sharing scheme,” Calimlim said.
Liomo said 32 fishing bancas participated in towing the dredge floater for 36 hours from 7 p.m. Friday to Sunday night.
He said they found the floating object 30 miles off Iba and about 120 miles from the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
Fisherman Gilbert Ulando said the dredge floater did not cause severe damage to the coral reefs when it was towed. “It was high tide when it was brought here. If ever there was damage, it was only slight and can easily recover,” he said.
Provincial Engr. Domingo Mariano said they have asked the fishermen to dismantle what he called as auction pipes or dredging pipes.
“Kapag hindi na-dismantle, it will create more hazards to the coral reefs and destroy houses near the sea when the waves become turbulent,” he said.
The provincial engineer said the dismantled objects will be placed in a safe place until it will be auctioned off when no claimant appears in 60 days.
“May marking ng China but when Governor Ebdane had it researched, it was found out that that there was no such factory in China.
Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia may have dredging operations too so we cannot determine where these dredging pipes and floaters came from,” Mariano said.
He said that there are many bidders but the governor wants better shares for fishermen and not middlemen to profit from their find. He estimated that a seamless pipe weighs from three to five tons each.
Mariano said the sharing between the finder, municipality and barangay is governed by a law.
