The question on weather the revamp of coastal law enforcement groups is effective this time remains to be seen, some officials said.

This came following the revamp of the Coastal Law Enforcement Council (CLEC) from three to eight (8) clusters in a smaller groups composed of four municipalities in manning and monitoring their coastal areas from illegal fishing and marine environmental degradation.

Some municipal mayors, including Mabini Mayor Esther Tabigue, said that they’re elated over the overhaul into smaller clusters so that resources could be spread out.

It used to be that the Galing Pook awardee CLEC was divided or grouped into three. But now they’re split into eight (8) clusters (Coastal Law Enforsment Clusters) based on the Executive Order No. 01 issued on January 7, 2015 by Gov. Edgar Chatto.

These clusters composed of municipal coastal towns are CLEC 1 – composed on this city only led by Mayor Baba Yap II; Clec 2 – Cortes, Maribojoc, Loon and Calape by Loon Mayor Lloyd Peter Lopez; CLEC 3 – Tubigon, Clarin, Inabanga and Buenavista by Inabnaga Mayor Josephine Socorro Jumamoy; CLEC 4 – Getafe, Talibon, Trinidad and Bien-Unido by Trinidad Mayor Judith del Rosario Cajes; CLEC 5 – Pres. Carlos P. Garcia, Ubay, Mabini and Candijay headed by Candijay Mayor Christopher Tutor; CLEC 6 – Anda, Guindulman, Duero and Jagna led by Anda Mayor Metudio L. Amper; CLEC 7 – Valencia, Garcia-Hernandez, Dimiao and Lila led by Valencia Mayor Maria Katrina L. Lim; and CLEC 8 – Loay, Alburquerque, Baclayon, Panglao and Dauis by Albur Mayor Efren Tungol.

The new officers of the CLECs were sworn in by Gov. Chatto during its general assembly yesterday at Bohol Tropics Resort Club in this city.

The governor said that the move (clustering) was an offshoot of the CLEC summit held last year. “It was resolved that the best mechanism to protect the coastal areas is through more areas specific interventions to empower and capacitate smaller groups of city/municipal local government units which has more direct contact with various stakeholders who have common resources as well as issues and concerns in coastal resource management,” the EO said.

To carry out their respective tasks in aw enforcement, the governor said the provincial government is ready to download some Php100,000 for the operations of each new clusters provided that activity design shall be submitted and approved by him.

EO is about “strengthening and sustaining the coastal monitoring and protection program of the province of Bohol by institutionalizing the coastal law enforcement councils (CLEC) and providing mechanisms for its effective implementation.”

The governor’s EO tries to correct “strategies to coastal law enforcement have to adjust at times accordingly,” saying “the issues and realities that changed dramatically in the last 13 years.”

Earlier, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) has been signed in 2001 between the province, city, municipalities, national government agencies and non-government organizations to compose the CLEC.

Members of the clusters include the following: city/municipal mayors, city/town vice mayors, chairmen of the committees of agriculture and environment of the respective legislative branch, city/municipal agriculturists, coastal resource management and fishery technicians, city/municipal information officers, chiefs of police, governor represented by the Bohol Environment Management Office (BEMO), provincial fishery officer, provincial environment and natural resrces officer, maritime police, provincial legal officer, non-government organization, municipal fisheries and aquatic resource management chairmen, barangay chairmen, barangay tanods and peoples organizations.

Each cluster is tasked to have its own officers, to convene every quarter, coordinate and harmonize all law enforcement activities, develop its own rules regulations and develop and implement its annual plan of action and to conduct seaborne patrol operations and police visibility in their respective municipal seawaters. (rvo)