Advocates and fisherfolk renewed calls for accountability and long-term protection for the Verde Island Passage as the deadline for oil spill claims neared, nearly three years after the MT Princess Empress disaster.

The calls were raised during the second Sangguniang Panlalawigan committee hearing on oil spill claims, held days before the third anniversary of the spill that devastated coastal communities in Oriental Mindoro.

The hearing followed a class action lawsuit filed in December 2025 by affected fisherfolk seeking compensation from shipowner RDC Reield Marine Services, charterer SL Harbor Bulk Terminal Corporation, and insurer The Shipowners’ Club.

“Adequate compensation for affected fishing families is an overdue response to the disaster. At the same time, there should also be conversations about how to ensure that a disaster of that magnitude does not happen again,” said Father Edwin Gariguez, lead convenor of Protect VIP.

An independent study by the Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development estimated the oil spill’s economic and environmental damage at ₱41.2 billion, highlighting the scale of losses suffered by fishing-dependent communities.

As of September 2025, only 15 percent of the estimated damages, or ₱2.7 billion, had been disbursed to affected claimants in the province, figures cited during the hearing showed.

Fisherfolk leaders said the compensation process has left many families without relief, even as livelihoods remain strained years after a five-month fishing ban and continuing ecological impacts.

“Sampal sa aming mukha ang hindi sapat na kompensasyong natanggap ng iilan sa amin. Mas malala pa, maraming mga mangingisda ay wala pa ring natatanggap na kabayaran, kahit pa ang kabuhayan namin mismo ang nanganib mula sa limang buwang fishing ban at patuloy na epekto ng spill,” said Aldrin Villanueva.

Villanueva, president of the Koalisyon ng mga Mangingisdang Apektado ng Oil Spill, said fisherfolk incomes have yet to recover fully due to persistently low fish catch.

Concerns over access to legal assistance were also raised during the hearing, presided over by SP Member Manny Buenaventura, as affected groups from several towns sought government intervention.

“Without legal representation, the rights of the claimants are a mere paper claim. Without action by those in the government, hope becomes false hope,” Buenaventura said.

“Our people deserve better. They deserve counsel, and they deserve real, not theoretical, justice,” he added.

Protect VIP reiterated its call for the designation of the Verde Island Passage as a marine protected area to limit industrial activities linked to environmental risks.

“Three years on, fisherfolk still lament the dwindling fish catch from the oil spill, yet we are still not hearing any concrete rehabilitation plans set in place for the polluted waters,” Gariguez said.

The meeting sought to consolidate actions among affected municipalities, including Gloria, Mansalay, Naujan, Pola, and Calapan, ahead of the claims deadline under Republic Act No. 9483.