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President Gloria Arroyo went to San Fernando, Romblon,
on Tuesday after her visit to Panay. It was a productive one-hour
visit. There was consultation with local officials and a Mass held
on the coast fronting the capsized MV Princess of the Stars. She
gave instructions to the rescue workers before returning to Manila.
To San
Fernando, these are important gestures from Manila. This town, just
like 16 others located in this poor province, has long been a victim
of official neglect. The subsidy from the national government,
coming from the internal revenue allocation, is pittance. The
investors who come here, according to a friend, are mostly
carpetbaggers.
Right now, there are about 20
applications for permits to mine in the three metal-rich towns.
There is gold and nickel in the island. Proof of this is gold
panning in Magdiwang town. But the big miners are lying low because
the permit granted by the provincial capitol has expired. And most
of all, the people are vigilant in their opposition to mining.
By the way, Environment Secretary
Lito Atienza prevented there the start of big mining operations six
months ago when the miners were poised to start operations. He
stopped the cutting down of some 80 thousand trees in Mount
Guiting-Guiting. That was something. Now, even assuming that the
provincial governor permits small-scale mining, the miners cannot
use big equipment.
A toxin called endosulfan
The people of Sibuyan are anxious
about the presence of a toxic substance called endosulfan embedded
in the sunken Princess of the Stars. At present, there is an
operation to retrieve the endosulfan from the bottom, making sure
that the substance does not pollute the Sibuyan Sea.
Aside from the presence of dead
bodies, endosulfan is the main reason why the Bureau of Fisheries
and Aquatic Resources has not lifted the ban on eating Sibuyan fish
products. It is believed that endosulfan would be bad for human
health.
For his part, Secretary Lito
Atienza of Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
has instructed the Environmental Management Bureau to join other
agencies in managing the problem of endosulfan. He wants the initial
DENR personnel sent to Sibuyan to monitor and act in case of an oil
spill. They must be beefed up by available experts and community
workers to deal with any incident or assist local residents.
The DENR chief has been in close
contact with DENR officials and staff involved in the rescue and
monitoring operations since Typhoon Frank hit the country.
Goodbye to China?
A report, quoting NorthRail
chairman Edgardo Pamintuan from Clark, said that Beijing has
withdrawn from the NorthRail project. But other sources, like Vice
President Noli de Castro, say Manila is still talking to the Chinese
firm CNMEG—which implies that the project is still a go.
The truth must be somewhere
in-between. About four months ago, Mr. Arsenio Bartolome, the
president of NorthRail, resigned without an explanation. The firm is
now headed by minor functionary. Already, observers are speculating
that the rumors about the project could be the result of the ZTE
investigations in the Senate.
China is now very cautious about
its dealings with the Philippines on strategic projects, suspending
some its investments in port development, agriculture and in the
maritime industry. One observer said that with the decreased
investments by China, will Uncle Sam have the money to invest in RP
projects?
Overlapping functions
I agree with the statement of
Speaker Prospero Nograles that we have too many agencies regulating
the maritime industry. That is why he is seeking a congressional
investigation to assess the situation and come up with new laws.
Congressmen who come from
Mindanao and the Visayas know the maritime industry. They are in
touch with their constituents whose only way of going to Manila is
by boat. For example, our congressman from Romblon, Rep. Eleandro
Madrona worked as a manager of a shipping firm before going to
Congress. Altogether, they can come up with correct policies.
Nograles says, “Our
embarrassing sea safety record might be a case of too many cooks
spoil the broth. I think that it is time to review, revise and
consolidate our maritime laws.” Nograles noted that there could be
too many government agencies with overlapping functions and
responsibilities overseeing the maritime industry.
He explained that the Marine
Industry Authority is mandated to promote safe, efficient,
economical, adequate, reliable and responsive water transport
services. As for the Philippine Coast Guard, it enforces maritime
safety policies and the Philippine Ports Authority, which is
mandated to establish, develop, regulate, manage and operate the
national port system. All are under the Department of Transportation
and Communications.
He also noted that because of the
cumbersome rules, shipping vessel owners tend to shortcut the
process to save on cost and effort and maximize profit. This is a
very serious matter that Congress must immediately consider and
resolve.
He said Congress must also find
ways to encourage new investments in the shipping industry because
most of our ships are about 25 years old.
jules42na@yahoo.com
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