The Iloilo Provincial Government has joined the chorus of opposition against the Supreme Court ruling permitting commercial fishing vessels within the 15-kilometer municipal waters.

Under the directive of Governor Arthur Defensor, Jr., the provincial government is set to file a motion for leave of court to intervene and admit the attached supplement to the petitioners’ motion for reconsideration.

Provincial Legal Office Chief Atty. Dennis Ventilacion and Provincial Agriculture Office’s Fisheries Division Head Felina Grace Basco conducted a final review of the documents before submitting them to the Supreme Court this afternoon.

Earlier, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed Resolution 2025-062 authorizing Gov. Defensor to represent the Province of Iloilo before the SC relative to the petitions versus the controversial ruling.

Provincial Administrator Raul Banias noted that the ruling is “a clear Social Injustice for the Artisanal Fishermen and to the autonomy of the local government units (LGUs) that squarely run against the principles of Social Justice that guides us in the province in the formulation of policies and programs.”

Banias, a former mayor of the coastal municipality of Concepcion, stressed that the ruling threatens the livelihoods of small scale fisherfolk, destroys marine biodiversity, and undermines the efforts of the LGUs in sustainable fisheries management.

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