By CESAR JOLITO III
The Cadiz City government is seeking the arrest of unidentified sea poachers responsible for the illegal extraction and killing of 33 giant clams from the city’s protected Giant Clam Village (GC Ville) off Barangay Cadiz Viejo, a 9.2-hectare marine conservation area located near Lakawon Island.
The poachers forcibly removed the giant clams from GC Ville, reportedly tortured and shucked them for their meat, with their empty shells left behind at the site on Christmas Day.
The affected clams form part of the 2,449 giant clams currently thriving within the sanctuary.
The giant clams are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and Philippine fisheries laws.
Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante, Jr. condemned the act, calling it a form of “environmental terrorism” and stressing that GC Ville is a cornerstone of Cadiz City’s environmental protection and marine conservation efforts.
To help identify the perpetrators, the city government has offered a P20,000 cash reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the suspects.
Escalante also ordered heightened security measures, including round-the-clock monitoring of the sanctuary by Bantay Dagat operatives, to prevent similar incidents.
Pursue the case
“This incident caused great pain to the city and its people. It was a bad Christmas gift for Cadiz,” Escalante said, adding that the city will pursue the case until those responsible are held accountable.
“I can’t imagine why others still have an obnoxious desire to become sea criminals, casting ill will against these ‘sea treasures’ of ours,” he added.
Under Republic Act No. 10654, or the amended Philippine Fisheries Code, individuals found guilty of poaching or killing protected marine species face criminal liability and fines ranging from P300,000 to P3 million.
The city government said they have received information pointing to possible suspects but emphasized that all leads are still being validated.
“Once we positively identify them, we will not hesitate to file the necessary criminal charges,” Escalante said.
“You gave us the hardest lesson. We will give you the hardest retribution just in case,” the mayor warned the suspects.
GC Ville traces its beginnings to 2020, when Ilongga Hereliza “Yhen” Osorio, then a staff member of Lakawon Island Resort, discovered three juvenile giant clams along the shoreline during the Covid-19 lockdown.
With support from the Cadiz City Agriculture Office, the conservation initiative formally started in 2021, with Osorio serving as lead caretaker and conservationist.
Four years later, the site has grown into a major conservation area housing four species of giant clams — Tridacna squamosa, Tridacna crosea, Hippopus hippopus, and Tridacna maxima — through successful breeding and broadcast spawning.
Barangay Cadiz Viejo is among only a handful of areas in the Philippines with established giant clam conservation sites, joining locations in Davao del Norte, Pangasinan, Palawan, Bohol, and Tawi-Tawi.
The Cadiz City government reiterated their commitment to protect the marine sanctuary and warned that any further attacks against protected marine life will be met with the full force of the law./CJ, WDJ