RESEARCH PROPOSAL

TITLE
Effectiveness of MPA Guards as Force Multiplier in Maritime Law Enforcement in

Snake Island, Subic, Zambales

INTRODUCTION

The protection of the maritime environment was embodied in the 1987

Constitution which provides that “The State shall protect and advance the right of the

people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of

nature.”

One of the common violations of environmental crimes is fishing through

explosives, noxious or poisonous substance, or electricity under Republic Act 8550 as

amended by Republic Act 10654. Blast fishing has been considered a destructive

method of fishing because it destroys coral reef habitats and fishery stocks as well as

other marine organism.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) have been important interventions in coral reef

management. In our country, about 500 MPAs are currently recorded although less than

ten (10%) of these are effectively managed. An evaluation was undertaken to assess

the state and progress of MPA management in the country with focus placed on

effectiveness, monitoring, success and significance in the local and national context.

Most MPAs were established with the aim of increasing fisheries yields, although

evidence for this result is still inadequate. Nevertheless, the educational value has been
tremendous and developments in national legislation have encouraged the

establishment of MPAs in local municipalities under R.A. 10654, an act to prevent, deter

and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, amending republic act no.

8550, otherwise known as "the philippine fisheries code of 1998,". Information from

successful MPAs indicated the urgency for more coordinated local and nationwide

efforts to counter the effects of overexploitation and habitat degradation. This means

that aside from the essential need for improving overall MPA management

effectiveness, a national strategy that will functionally link MPA management through

integrated coastal management programs in the municipal, bay-wide and biogeographic

context is imperative.

Philippine National Police Maritime Group is one of the National support Unit of

the PNP that is mandated to perform all police functions and ensure public safety and internal

security over Philippine territorial waters and rivers including ports of entry and exit; and sustain

the protection of the maritime environment. In sustaining the effort and commitment to protect

the maritime environment, the PNP MG is Implementing impact projects as its humble

contribution in the sustainable management of our marine natural resources and its

environment.

The PNP MG has delved onto adoption of Marine Protected Areas to support national

government agencies in protecting their resources under National Integrated Protected Area

System (NIPAS) and to support selected LGUs in ensuring that the identified protected areas

they created are functional and enforced to obtain their maximum social economic benefits.
 The Adopt a Marine Protected Area (AMPA) projects of the said group had strengthened

the recruitment, organization and mobilization of MPA guards who served as force multipliers in

implementing the project.

The program was established through network of volunteer force multipliers at the

context of LOI 22/09 “BAYANIHAN” through the Barangay Peace Action Teams (BPATs) who

are willing to share their time efforts, resources and professional expertise with MG. These

volunteers are organized and function under three functional components of BPATs namely:

Law Enforcement particularly of Maritime Laws; Environmental Protection; and Disaster

Preparedness and Response. As such, they shall be called MPA Guards

The Two best practices aim to intensify the campaign for effective law enforcement

against illegal fishing and anti-pollution campaign and promote marine conservation to support

the government’s mission to preserve the country’s natural wealth and ensure sustainable food

security.

MPA guards, as volunteers, will directly work with PNP Maritime Group to enforce the

regulations embodied in the ordinance creating the MPA. The PNP Maritime Group shall take

full jurisdiction in the filing of cases against violators they apprehend within the vicinity of AMPA.

Philippines being an archipelago, PNP maritime group having insufficient personnel

especially in provinces cannot fully watch over and protect all the territorial waters of the

Philippines. Due to this matter, MPA Guards are essential in implementing maritime law

enforcement for the protection of MPA.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

 This research seeks to determine the effectiveness of Maritime Protected Area

Guards in aiding PNP Maritime Group in enforcing maritime laws. By defining the

existing issues, this research will be able to

This study aims to measure the effectiveness of Adopted Marine Protected Area Guards

in

1. Degree of contribution on Successful Law Enforcement operation through the

information shared by MPA Guards.

2. Degree of contribution on Successful Warrantless Arrest of MPA Guards in the study

area.

3. What is the level of contribution of the factors of the effective implementation of the

proposed programs in the study area? Level of contribution on factors of effective

implementation of community relations program of PNP Maritime Group in the study

area.

4. What is the degree of effectiveness of the problems encountered in the implementation

of the programs in the study area?

5. What is the degree of need to implement the problem for effective implementation of the

proposed programs? Degree of Need to recruit of MPA Guards on the implementation of Adopt a

Marine Protected Areas of PNP Maritime Group.

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of AMPA GUARDS in maritime law

enforcement in Snake Island, Subic, Zambales. Specifically, it sought to answer the

following questions; 1. What is the demographic profile of the AMPA GUARDS in terms

of:

1.1 age

1.2 gender

1.3 civil status

1.4 educational attainment

1.5 years of experience as Barangay Tanod

2. What do the PNP-MG, Barangay Officials and the AMPGA GUARDS themselves

assess the effectiveness of AMPA GUARDS in Maritime Law Enforcement in terms of:

2.1. conduct of patrolling

2.2. conduct of surveillance

2.3. conduct of proper arrest

2.4. coordination to barangay officials

2.5. conduct of community relations

3. Is there a significant relationship between the effectiveness of AMPA GUARDS and

their demographic profile?

4. Is there a significant difference between the assessment of the PNP-MG, Barangay

Officials and AMPA GUARDS themselves relative to the effectiveness of AMPA

GUARDS in Maritime Law Enforcement?

5. How serious are the problems encountered by the AMPA GUARDS in Maritime Law

Enforcement?

6. What can be proposed to enhance the effectiveness of AMPA GUARDS in Maritime

Law Enforcement?

Definition of Terms

For easier and better understanding of the study, the following variables are

conceptually defined:

PNP MG (Philippine National Police Maritime Group) - is one of the National

support Unit of the PNP that is mandated to perform all police functions and ensure public

safety and internal security over Philippine territorial waters and rivers including ports of entry

and exit; and sustain the protection of the maritime environment

Marine Protected Areas (MPA) – collectively refer to fish sanctuaries or refuge,

marine reserves, refugia, marine parks and all other marine areas where human

activities such as swimming, fishing, diving, and navigating are either prohibited or

regulated through a law or ordinance with the expressed objective of conserving its

resources.
SCOPE AND DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of Marine Protected Area Guards

in Snake Island, Sub Zambales on the Implementation of Maritime Law Enforcement.

Specifically, it is anticipated that this research will be beneficial to the following:

Community - This study will serve as an eye opener and will give

information to the society about their situation on their Marine Environment. Also, the

study would help to raise their awareness on the cause and effect of abused marine

biodiversity and on what kind of support they can give to their Marine Protected Area. 

Fisherfolks - This study is primarily concerned with the fishing activities

of fisherman to be aware of the cause and effect of overexploitation and habitat

degradation of MPA and on what kind of support they can give to MPA guards to

Maritime Law Enforcement as a whole.

Marine Biodiversity - This study will be conducted in order to ensure that

resources are sustainable that they will not run out. By having limits that prevent

overfishing, these MPA Guards ensures that fish can reproduce and maintain healthy

populations. This enables people to fish year after year, maintaining their way of life.

Maritime Law Enforcers - The Law Enforcement Agencies (PNP- MG, BFAR, PCG,

Local police, and other concerned government agencies) who are responsible in

monitoring of the condition of the Marine Protected area. This research may serve as a

basis of programs and services for the development of the MPA.

Future Researchers - This study may serve as a guide and reference for the

future researchers. Also, this can also be used as a support for the development of

other related researches. 

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Many organizations outside of the field law enforcement have used unpaid civilian
volunteers for a significant number of years—to the point where they have become
essential contributors to the organizations’ success. For example, hospitals and libraries
probably could not function effectively without their teams of volunteers. Hospitals use
volunteers to man information desks, answer phones, schedule patients, and transport
patients around the hospital, while libraries use them for all the duties associated with
running the library, such as shelving books, checking books out or in, and assisting
patrons. Some law enforcement agencies have used paid and unpaid auxiliary officers
over the years, and in many cases, smaller agencies are often dependent upon part-
time officers to meet workload needs during peak periods. However, while these part-
time and auxiliary officers have been widely accepted in law enforcement, most
departments have been reluctant to use civilian volunteers in meaningful numbers.
There are a number of reasons why people volunteer. Some retirees are simply bored
and miss working. Some people volunteer to gain work experience and enhance their
resume after long periods out of the workforce. Many others simply volunteer to help
their community. Departments who use volunteers often attract individuals who are
highly qualified in specific areas. These individuals often come with years of experience
and extensive education and training. An easy example of these specialties is computer
skills. There are many civilians who, because of their previous employment and training,
are much more qualified in computer-based tasks than the police officers and civilian
employees an agency might assign to those areas. Also, police departments that are
fortunate enough to be in locations where there is a large retired population often make
use of retired police officers who have extensive experience—one can imagine how a
retired homicide detective from a major city would be of value to a small or medium-size
agency that has few homicides and, thus, less experience.
Once the agency makes a decision to use volunteers, the organization must commit to
certain principles. The basics that apply to hiring paid personnel also apply to the use of
volunteers. They must be recruited, properly screened, and sufficiently trained to
perform their assigned duties. They must also be introduced to and taught the goals,
policies, procedures, rules, and regulations of the organization. In addition, volunteers
need to be treated like regular employees in many ways. They need to receive
recognition when they perform good work. They need to receive discipline when they do
not follow the rules of the organization. They need to be assigned to work they can
perform. If they can’t perform the assigned jobs, they should be reassigned to
something that matches their skills or terminated. They also must be assigned
meaningful work, rather than simply being used in random tasks that regular employees
do not consider important or interesting. In summary, they need to be held to the same
performance and behavioral standards as paid employees.

Voluntary citizen participation in law enforcement may be carried out within public police
organizations, in cooperation with police or purely as a citizen initiative. In any of its
diverse forms, it is a gift of resources to police that carries with it both benefits and risks
for them. Harnessing these resources in a way that maximizes benefits and minimizes
risks presents police with a real challenge.

Many police officers would agree that, like mothers, they would benefit by growing an
extra pair of hands or eyes in the back of their heads.

https://www.policechiefmagazine.org/police-use-civilian-volunteers/ Joseph Koziol,

Chief of Police (Ret.)

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 There many factors that determines the effectiveness of the MPA GUARDS, but

in this study the researchers group it into four major classifications. First is the

Successful Maritime Law Enforcement operations which refers to the arrest of violators

of RA 9165 (Warrantless/Citizens arrest). Next is the intelligence shared of the AMPA

guards to law enforcements agencies which refers to the information gathered

pertaining to the violators of RA 10654. Other factors are the availability of

communication and mobility assets of the organization and their knowledge and skills.

Successful Maritime Law Knowledge and Skills of

Enforcement Operations the AMPA guards

Effectiveness
of AMPA
guards

Shared information of the

Available Technology and
AMPA guards
Equipment
Figure 1. The conceptual framework of the study

Statement of the Hypothesis

There is no significant difference in the respondent’s assessment of factors

affecting the effectiveness of MPA guards in Maritime Law Enforcement.

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

ASSUMPTION
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
METHODOLOGY
RESEARCH DESIGN
SAMPLING TECHINIQUE
DATA GATHERING INSTRUMENRS
DATA GATHERING PROCEDURE
STATISTICAL TREATMENT OF DATA

http://www.jcreview.com/fulltext/197-1590732034.pdf
http://www.ndcp.edu.ph/index.php/library/thesis-1898/
file:///D:/ForceMultiplier-Peopleasapolicingresource.pdf
https://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/volunteer_handbook.pdf
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260298529_Gaps_and_Issues_in_Volunteer_
Management_Evidences_from_civil_society_organizations