AN OFFICIAL of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has vowed to pursue charges against the people behind the illegal cutting of mangrove and conversion of a river into a fishpond in Zamboanga City.
DENR Assistant Regional Director Ronald Gadot said they are in the process of collecting evidences in preparation for the filing of appropriate charges against the people behind the cutting of at least three hectares of mangrove in the village of Curuan, this city.
Gadot said the river must not be closed and converted into a fishpond as the river, a natural stream of water, belongs to the state.
Charges of illegal cutting of mangrove and illegal occupation will be filed against the perpetrators, he said.
The cutting of the mangrove and closing of the river in the village of Curuan was brought to the attention of Gadot by Councilor Al-Jihan Edding.
Edding said she was dismayed to see the three hectares of mangrove was cut and the river was closed when she visited Curuan upon receiving report of the illegal activities ongoing in the area.
Edding she was informed by the workers constructing a dike in the river that the owner of the area is a soldier.
There was no record, however, to show the place is owned by the soldier when Edding checked at the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and Office of the City Agriculture.(VoxPop Philippines)
