THE sunken MT Princess Empress, which has caused the Mindoro oil spill incident, has no license to operate, Senator Cynthia Villar revealed Tuesday.
Villar, who presided over the Senate hearing on the oil spill, disclosed that the RDC Reield Marine Services, the tanker owner of the MT Princess Empress, is not covered by the proper permit.
On February 28, the MT Princess Empress ran into engine trouble and sank while sailing in the seas off Mindoro. The vessel was transporting 800,000 liters of industrial fuel at the time of sinking off the coast of Naujan town.
There is a report from Marina that says the ship has no authority to operate in the form of amendment to its certificate of public convenience issued to operate the MT Princess Empress in the domestic trade, pursuant to the revised implementing rules and regulations of Republic Act no 9295,”
Senator Cynthia Villar
A CPC is a license given by the MARINA to a ship for the purpose of providing domestic water transportation services for commercial or public usage without the need for a legislative or municipal franchise, as mandated by law.
Under the rules, a CPC cannot be issued unless the applicant has complied with prescribed safety requirements and service standards.
Villar’s revelation raised the eyebrows of members of the panel, including Sen. Raffy Tulfo, who asked the Philippine Coast Guard and the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) to explain why they allowed the tanker to operate despite the lack of requirements.
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“‘Di ba lahat ng barkong naglalayag dapat sumasampa ang coast guard to inspect? So, kung in-inspeksyon niyo po ‘yung barkong ‘yun na bagong barko, nakita niyo pong walang permit to operate, hindi niyo sana pinalarga, ini-stop niyo. Wala sanang oil spill ngayon,” Tulfo said.
No CPC
MARINA Administrator Hernani Fabia confirmed during the Senate hearing that the MT Princess Empress does not have the authority to operate.
This is because the owner, RDC Reield Marine Services, was required to amend its certificate of public convenience when it added a new ship to its fleet, but its request for the new one is still pending.
RDC Reield Marine Services Vice President Fritzie Tee confirmed that the MT Princess Empress is a new vessel and that it has already operated and sailed nine times despite not having an amended CPC.
Tee reported that the company had submitted an application for an amended CPC in November 2022, but it has yet to receive approval from MARINA.
PCG negligence
Tulfo went on to berate the PCG for its “negligence” in allowing the sunken tanker to sail despite not presenting an amended CPC.
He added that the incident would not have happened had the PCG and MARINA ensured that all vessels were covered by complete requirements before being allowed to set sail.
Walang barkong lalayag ng walang go-signal mula sa Philippine Coast Guard, at dapat kayong coast guard at Marina, palaging nag-uusap. Kayo ba’y nag-aaway ng Marina at hindi kayo nag-uusap?”
Sen. Raffy Tulfo
The PCG replied that it was closely collaborating with MARINA.
‘Investigate high-ranking officials, too.’
The PCG also said it is already “investigating” all the personnel involved in the issue and that they were already placed “under custody” of the agency.
But Tulfo said the PCG “should investigate high-ranking officials.”
Hindi lang dapat yung mabababang ranggo dapat yung matataas na ranggo rin sa ngalan po ng command responsibility at bakit hindi sila sinusupervise ng mga matataas ang ranggo,”
Sen. Raffy Tulfo
Lack of assistance
Meanwhile, Oriental Mindoro Gov. Humerlito Dolor lamented that the province received insufficient aid from the owner of the sunken tanker.
Dolor said RDC Reield Marine Services helped the local government unit in clean-up drives, but it has not provided any “direct assistance” to affected citizens.
This was also the complaint of Pola, Oriental Mindoro Mayor Jennifer Cruz.
Tee said RDC Reield Marine Services reached out to the Oriental Mindoro local governments to determine what they need, but “they told us they don’t need it, they don’t want to receive help from us.”
Cruz, in response, said they would like the company to lay out its plans for the assistance, since there is no clear plan of action to address the damage, and that’s why they refused the help from the company.
Sabi ko ilatag nila. Hindi niyo sinasabi sa amin clear ano ang plano nyo sa damages. Sabi ko hindi na namin tatanggapin kasi kulang at ang tagal namin naghintay,”
Oriental Mindoro Mayor Jennifer Cruz
Oil spill damage
The oil spill incident resulted in at least 77 coastal settlements being placed under a state of calamity, and the number of families who were affected by the oil spill surpassed 23,000. This is equivalent to 108,162 people being directly affected by the spill.
Some of the affected residents lost their livelihood or their sources of food.
Moreover, the oil that leaked from the tanker has also damaged marine resources.
The University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute had also warned that the oil spill may reach the Verde Island Passage, which is the global center of marine biodiversity.
