Mati City, Davao Oriental, Oct. 16 – The first day of the Pacific Rim Journey brought me to the capital city of Mati passing through the rice producing town of Banaybanay and part of Gov. Generoso.
The first sight that captured my attention was a pair of men carrying a box filled with “tulingan,” which belongs to the Tuna family.
The price per kilo: P100. It may have been less from where they bought it, a place where fishing boats unload their catch to be brought to Davao and even as far as Cagayan de Oro to the north.
Mati City and the other towns in the Pacific Rim face the so-called “Tuna Highway” where fishing boats from as far as General Santos City, the “Tuna” capital of the Philippines, catch their supplies.
The locals could not fully harvest the bounties of the waters fronting them because of the absence of fish landing, ice-making and cold storage facilities.
Proceeding to the famous Dahican Beach line with Board Member Louie Rabat, I was informed that one of the biggest problems of Mati City and even the other towns of Davao Oriental is water.
The water rights over two major rivers in Mati City for example have been awarded to two companies who have not made any move to establish facilities to provide water.
In the meantime, most of Mati rely on deep wells drilled near the coast which sometimes pumps out salty water.
These are basic problems which the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) could help address by linking with other government agencies.
The trip to the Pacific Rim of Mindanao is turning into a journey of discovery which could help improve people’s lives.
(Photos were taken by Mayette Tudlas, MinDA OC)
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