ALAMINOS CITY—Come to Hundred Islands National Park but strictly no eating of its giant clams.

A Taiwanese national who came here learned a hard lesson when he was apprehended by Bantay Dagat personnel for killing a giant clam (Tridacna gigas) at the Quezon Island apparently as an aphrodisiac food.

Mayor Hernani Braganza told this writer in a phone interview that Tsoa Kuang-Chih, temporarily residing at Baguio City, was arrested for violating Section 97 of the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 (RA 8550) and the National Integrated Protected Area System Act (RA7586).

Perhaps amazed by the presence of several giant clams in the park, Tsoa could not resist harvesting one and cooked it kilawen style ( its meat sliced and mixed with vinegar, ginger, onions, pepper and salt).

Braganza said Tsoa was with a group of visitors and they had a tourist guide who warned them that such act of getting giant clams is prohibited. But when the guide left, Tsoa followed his instinct and got one giant clam. A boatman saw him and reported the incident to the authorities.

Tsoa apologized for his act and claimed he didn’t know about Philippine laws governing giant clams. But he was nonetheless fined with P40,000 or less than a thousand US dollars.

The penalty was based on the gravity of his offense along with the number of years of the giant clam multiplied with its current value appraised by city’s fish examiner and Tanggol Kalikasan, Public Interest Environment Law Office based in the city headed by Atty. Nhelie Lagura.

Braganza said the city government allows tourists to take pictures, snorkel and hold the giant clams. “But we let them (tourists) know that they just cannot poach or hunt giant clams, collect corrals and gather bonsais at our city’s protected treasure,” he said.

In mid 1990s, then President Fidel Ramos, Braganza’s uncle, initiated the giant clam seeding at the Hundred Islands.

Braganza has taken huge strides in realizing his vision of making the park the Giant Clam Garden of Asia and conservation of the city’s protein bowl.

The Giant Clam and Corral Garden near the Quezon Island is one of the main tourist attractions today at the national park.

No less than 7,000 giant clams at the Hundred Islands are currently being protected by the city government’s Bantay Dagat and the local police.