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Ferry operator Sulpicio Lines Inc. had failed to declare that its
ship Princess of the Stars was carrying poisonous chemicals when it
sank last month, the House of Representatives found out Tuesday.
House Deputy Speaker Raul del Mar, during a
hearing conducted by the House Committee on Transportation, showed
two documents that supposedly showed Sulpicio’s failure to state
that the Endosulfan pesticide on board Princess of the Stars was
toxic.
The documents, both bills of lading,
contradicted each other, however.
The bill of lading of Yang Ming Marine Transport
Corp. said the pesticide that Yang Ming was shipping from Israel to
Manila was poisonous. The bill of lading of Sulpicio did not declare
the cargo as toxic.
The ferry operator was to bring the pesticide
from Manila to Cebu last month. The cargo, shipped by fruit giant
Del Monte Philippines Inc., did not reach Cebu. On June 21, Princess
of the Stars went down off Sibuyan Island in central Romblon
province. Fewer than 100 of its passengers and crew survived and the
Endosulfan pesticide is still inside the ship. Sulpicio Lines has
not complied with the government’s order to refloat the sunken
ferry.
Luis Alejandro, the chief operating officer of
Del Monte, told the House committee that Sulpicio should have been
the party that will declare the Endosulfan cargo as toxic. He denied
that it was Del Monte that had prepared documents attesting that the
pesticide was poisonous.
Edgar Go, the first vice-president of Sulpicio
Lines, quickly disputed Alejandro’s claims before the House
committee headed by Rep. Monico Puentebella of Bacolod City (Negros
Occidental).
Go said Sulpicio gave Del Monte the form that
the fruit giant had to fill out regarding the Endosulfan pesticide.
As the shipper, Go added, Del Monte was to give Sulpicio details
about the cargo and any information stated in the official bill of
lading came from the form that the shipper had filled out.
Del Mar pointed out that the bill of lading of
the ferry operator stated that the vessel that will ship the
poisonous cargo was Princess of the Paradise, not Princess of the
Stars.
Alejandro denied that Sulpicio consulted Del
Monte on the transfer of the cargo.
Del Mar, however, said he has information that
there was an oral agreement between Sulpicio and Del Monte on
loading the cargo onto a vessel leaving Manila ahead of Princess of
the Paradise.
“It so happened that Princess of the Stars
went ahead of Princess of the Paradise. We cannot allow this
cavalier attitude in shipping toxic substances,” the House Deputy
Speaker said.
During the hearing, Go admitted that there were
other toxic shipments on board Princess of the Stars that, according
to Alejandro, the ferry operator had not declared as also toxic.
Transportation Undersecretary Elena Bautista
showed the House committee documents from the Fertilizer and
Pesticide Authority stating that indeed not only the Endosulfan
pesticide was being moved. Bayer Philippines allegedly was the
shipper of one such cargo, which supposedly had met shipping
standards.
-- Sammy Martin
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