Four violators of Chainsaw Act were apprehended by the PCSD Staff Enforcement Team in different areas of the Province of Palawan
Three of them were caught in Brgy. Sibaltan in the Municipality of El Nido last May 13, 2020 for using a chainsaw with an expired permit while the other one was apprehended in Sitio Candiz III, Brgy. Bacungan in the City of Puerto Princesa on May 16, 2020 for possessing a chainsaw unit without a proper permit.
The first three violators were identified as Urbano Montellano, Dolphy Lajallab and Arnold Gabo and the recent one was Antonio M. dela Cruz.
According to PCSDS Spokesperson Jovic Fabello, currently, their team is doing case a build-up “in preparation for filing of appropriate administrative and/or Criminal charges [against the violators].”
“Nasa custody [na] ng office ang chainsaws. ‘Yung mga tao wala sa custody namin. [Ngayon, nasa] case build up phase pa [kami] for regular filing of case,” Fabello added.
Fabello further stated that they will file an appropriate case the “soonest possible time.”
According to PCSD Staff, the implementing arm of PCSD, caught individuals violated the provision of Section 7(1) of RA 9175, otherwise known as the “Chainsaw Act of 2002,” that prohibits any person from selling, purchasing, transferring the ownership, distributing, or otherwise disposing or possessing a chainsaw without first securing the necessary permit from the proper authorities. They also reiterated that in the Province of Palawan, the proper permit can be secured from the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development(PCSD).