A whale shark sighting in Boracay waters isn’t anything new, Greenpeace Philippines Oceans Campaigner Vince Cinches told Coconuts Manila today.
He said in Filipino that “it’s not rare to see a whale shark” since there have been reported sightings during the previous years.
Local fishermen reportedly spotted the whale shark near the Crystal Cove Island which was formerly known as Tiguatian Island. GMA News reported that the fishermen said it wasn’t the first time a whale shark was spotted off Boracay.
Cinches said that instead of the government focusing on the whale shark sighting, they should provide “clear metrics” on the rehabilitation plan.
“I think the government is hyping the wrong metrics,” he told Coconuts Manila in a phone interview. “I think it’s important for the government to divulge the Boracay rehabilitation plan.”
This is a direct reply to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque’s comment on Monday saying that the controversial Boracay closure and clean up was a success because a whale shark was spotted in the area last week.
“I think that [sighting] shows that the effort to clean up Boracay has succeeded,” Roque said. “If you’re able to attract a whale shark, that means we must have pristine waters anew in Boracay.”
READ: Boracay by the numbers: 6 months, 30,000 jobs, 1 very uncertain future
Boracay is very popular with tourists but has been undergoing environmental problems due to overdevelopment for years. It is now closed for a 6-month rehabilitation that started in late April.
Cinches agrees that the island needs to be revived, however, he said there should be a comprehensive rehabilitation plan in order to keep people in the loop of its progress.
“They (the government) have to let out the rehabilitation plan to see the degree of achievement,” Cinches said.
He also said that it is important to show the public what is actually happening on the island, which includes updates not just on the environment but also on the people living there.
In the end, Cinches stressed that someone must be held accountable for Boracay’s current environmental problems.
“The issue of Boracay didn’t happen overnight because it’s an accumulation of years and years of neglect of greed and corruption,” he said.
Don’t pat yourself on the back just yet, government.
