Senator Cynthia Villar, chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Food, called a public hearing to assess the implementation of Republic Act 10654, the law against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the country. Villar inquired from Usec. Eduardo Gongona (right), director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the amount collected from violators since the law took effect in 2015. Under the law principally authored by Villar, the penalties and fines will be collected to form the Fisheries Management Fund, where 65 percent will be allocated to assist small fisherfolk in the form of shared facilities, scholarship and livelihood programs.
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