President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. led the distribution of confiscated mackerel to residents of Baseco Port Area in Manila on Saturday.

During the event, the President expressed the renewed government resolve to go after smugglers and hoarders of fishery and agricultural products.

“Naiba po ang pamasko namin. Imbes na hamon at saka mga lechon, isda, tulingan ang aming dala. Para naman hindi masayang,” President Marcos said during the distribution at the Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Elementary School Gym.

“Asahan po niyo na kapag ka may ganitong pangyayari, ang una naming iniisip [ay] kung paano gagamitin itong mga nahuling bagay-bagay na ito. Kung minsan hindi lang naman pagkain,” he added.

Residents (around 21,000 households) of Barangay 649 in Baseco received the donated goods through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). Each household got two kilos of mackerel.

The frozen mackerel will also be distributed to the poorest barangays of 17 other local governments in Metro Manila, Obando and Meycauayan in Bulacan, and Bacoor in Cavite.

Select city jails, public hospitals, and various care facilities will likewise receive the confiscated goods. An estimated 150,000 families will benefit from the donation.

On Sept. 28 and 29, 21 containers of frozen mackerel shipments from China, with an estimated market value of P178.5 million, were seized at the Manila International Container Port (MICP).

Officials said the consignee of the shipment is being investigated due to violation of Department of Agriculture Memorandum Order No. 14, s. 2024, which suspends the issuance of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearances for the importation of round scad, mackerel, and bonito.

In November, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) declared the frozen mackerel safe for human consumption. Upon the recommendation of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), the DOF approved the donation to the DA in early December.

The DA donated the frozen goods to the Department of Social Welfare and Development through a Deed of Donation and Acceptance (DODA) for distribution.

To help address agricultural sabotage, the BOC seized P5.87 billion worth of smuggled agricultural products from July 2022 to November 2024.

The agency filed 250 cases involving agricultural products worth P8.59 billion from 2018 to 2024. Presidential News Desk