Photo courtesy of Cebu Port Authority
MANDAUE CITY, Cebu — With wildlife trafficking still a perennial problem in Cebu and the rest of the country, Cebu port police were made to undergo training that would teach them how “detect” and “intercept” animals that would be shipped through the ports of Cebu.
The two-day paralegal training by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) was held from September 24 to 25, 2020 at the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) Social Hall.
“The initiative aims to capacitate port police officers on how to detect and intercept illegal wildlife products, arrest of wildlife traffickers and seizure of items and effect of wildlife crimes in ports,” said the CPA advisory.
DENR said that seaports are key transit gateways for illegal wildlife products and the high cargo and passenger traffic in Cebu ports make it vulnerable to be exploited by wildlife traffickers.
“While we continue our fight against COVID-19, we should not let our guard down against any illegal activities. Rest assured that CPA in collaboration with our partners in the maritime sector and enforcement agencies will ensure and maintain strict security and safety protocols in our ports,” said CPA General Manager Leonilo Miole./dbs