Moalboal fishermen hope for the best amid COVID-19 challenges
42-year-old fisherman Raul Bolo sits beside his hut in Sitio Pook in Barangay Poblacion West, Moalboal Cebu. | CDND Photo.Raul Constantine Tabanao
MOALBOAL, CEBU — Under the scorching heat of the sun, Raul Bolo, and his brother Santiago, spend their time cleaning a grassy field near his house in Poblacion West, Moalboal, Cebu.
Raul, 42, a fisherman, told CDN Digital that they have been cleaning the field for six days now in exchange for P3,000. The amount will be divided equally between him and his brother.
He did this to support his wife, Charolette, and their 4 children.
“Paita, pait gyud karun di na ta ka katarung og pangita. Kuan nalang gani ko, nisud nalang ko diri nga mangguna. Duha mi magtunga sa akong maguwang,” Raul said.
Raul, who sells fish for almost 18 years, used to earn an average of P200 to P300 a day.
However, for three weeks now, Raul said that he could no longer sell fish in the town’s wet market due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Lahi na ron, karun isdaan man. Karun murag ni-uban man sa covid ang mga isda. Way ayo man. Bawal man ang managat, buyagon man. Buyagon sa coast guard ba. Kay kuno, bawal magtapok unya lagyo ra baya mi,” he added.
To sustain the needs of his family, Raul instead does different jobs such as helper and trisikad driver especially in times when he would not go fishing.
“Kung di ko ka pangisda, mutrabaho ko diris baol. Kung wa untay quarantine ron, nag-drive nakog sikad ron. Mamas-an og unsay pas-anonon. Mao ra. Helper ba,” he said.
Amid the coronavirus pandemic, he admitted that every day is a tough battle that he and his family had to surmount.
“Lisura ron oy, lisud gyud kaayo ron. Wa man puy ayo ang dagat gud kay igu ra panud-an, di [ta] ka kwarta, way mapalit-palit,” he said.
“Naa raman mi bugas nya problema lagi ang sud-an way ikapalit, kung way ayo sa dagat usahay ma-zero. wa gyuy sud-an. Unsa may ipalit nga wa man tay pangita,” he added.
Raul’s dilemma is echoed by his fellow fishermen who are all rendered helpless amid stringent quarantine restrictions to prevent the virus from spreading.
Raul’s neighbor Ismeraldo Gabales, a barangay tanod who also catches fish for a living, admitted to CDN Digital that he also had a hard time making money these days.
“Ay, minus karun, usahay makakuha, usahay naa, then usahay wala. Di steady makakuha ba,” he said.
Ismeraldo said he goes fishing twice a week and earn an average of P200 to P500.
He added that in this time of the coronavirus health crisis, he would no longer sell whatever bounty he could harvest from the ocean but will instead use it to feed his family.
But Ismeraldo is more fortunate than most fishermen in this town known for its white beaches, island hopping, and other tourism-related activities. Because aside from his meager catch from the sea, Ismeraldo is also receiving a monthly honorarium of P900 for being a barangay tanod. The money according to him is a big help in this time when everyone is struggling to earn a penny.
Despite the daunting challenges they’re facing just to survive in these times of crisis, Raul and Ismeraldo shared with CDN Digital their most fervent hope, and that is, for the pandemic to end and for everything to go back to normal. /rcg
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