THE Supreme Court (SC) recently dismissed
a petition questioning the constitutionality of Republic
Act 9295 or the Domestic shipping Development Act and
its implementing rules and regulations (IRR) promulgated
by the maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) .
A certain Eugenia San Pablo, a grantee
of a franchise to operate shipping services covering
the routers via Matnog, Sorsogon-Alen, Northern Samar
and Tabaco, Albay and vice versa, filed the petition.
She claimed the law contains "unconstitutional
provisions such as the delegation of fixing shipping
passenger and cargo rates to shipping opeartors themselves"
as well as "authorizing foreigners to operate domestic
shipping services and ship repair service in the country".
San Pablo also criticized MARINA for
crossing constitutional boundaries when it required
shipping operators to secure a much higher insurance
coverage for passengers and cargoers compared to land
and air transport operators, disregarded the citizenship
and due process requisites in the franchising process,
particularly the right to notice and hearing and to
oppose on the part affected operators, and ordered the
cancellation of shipping CPCs (Certificate of public
Convenience) by june 11, 2005 without valid reason and
without notice and hearing.
The High Court reminded the petitioner of the "unbending
rule in constitutional law that courts will not assume
jurisdiction over a constitutional question unless the
following conditions are first satisfied: (1) there
must be an actual case or controversy involving a conflict
of rights susceptible of judicial determination; (2)
the constitutional question must be raised by a proper
party and at the eraliest opportunity; and (3) the resolution
of the constitutional question must be necessary to
the resolution of the case."
It added: "It cannot be disputed that there is
yet no actual case or controversy involving the petitioner.
As yet, petitioner's existing franchise remains operative
and there is no indication that her application for
new CPC will be denied."
It said it saw no sense of urgency in the petition as
the petitioner was merely apprehensive she will sustain
injury as a result of the implementation of the Domestic
Shipping Act and its IRR.
"The petitioner's existing franchise is very much
operative without any concrete indication whatsoever
that an application for a renewal thereof will be denied,"
the court said."
Maersk
Logistics eyes double-digit growth this year, further
market expansion
MAERSK LOGISTICS is expecting double-digit
growth in cargo traffic this year, according to general
manager Issa L. Magtira-Yu.
The projection follows plans to expand the market and
bring services to other untapped areas in the Philippines.
Magtira-Yu said the company is continuously scouting
for opportunities that would make the business prosper
even more. "Even if we are the leaders, there are
still a lot of opportunities that we have not tapped
yet," she noted.
Maersk-Filipinas, Inc. president Erik Møller
Nielsen said Maersk's performance is dependent on the
future of the electronics and semiconductors industries
- the country's top export commodities - and textiles,
the main commodity of logistics companies.
He said the Philippines would largely benefit from the
European Union and the US' new quota restrictions on
textiles and garments. "Everybody is talking about
China competing with Philippine textile products. It
remains to be seen upon the implementation of this quota
requirement," he noted.
Nielsen added developments in the logistics sector and
the performance of various businesses are more likely
to be affected by external factors such as the world
market and oil prices.
Last year, the company posted double-digit growth, mainly
due to additional business from its existing customers
and the healthy business environment.
Europe and the US remained the company's key destinations
in 2004, accounting for 70% of the total market. Majority
of commodities it handled were textiles and garments.
Medium-term
plan to prioritize ro-ro ports development
UNDER its 2005-2010 Medium-Term Philippine
Development Plan (MTPDP), the national government will
prioritize the development of the Road Roll-on/Roll-off
(ro-ro) Terminal System.
Transportation and Communications Transport Planning
Service director Ildefonso Patdu, Jr. in a presentation
to Congress recently said MTPDP needs to focus on projects
critical to trade and investment stimulation. For this
reason, the government is eyeing the development of
ro-ro ports and highways connecting them and the roads
and rail systems that will decongest Metro Manila.
Road projects include the Clark-Subic Highway and highways
catalytic to development of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao,
roads and airports to tourism hubs, and affirmative
action projects for Mindanao and other highly impoverished
conflicted areas.
"The islands have to be interconnected by good
transport and communications networks that will open
up new economic opportunities, reduce transportation
and transaction costs of business and increase access
to social services," Patdu noted.
This interconnection will strengthen the socio-economic,
cultural and political linkages between and among regions
and eventually decentralize progress and bring development
to the countryside, he added.
Patdu disclosed the MTPDP is allotting P35 billion to
support infrastructure for the nautical highways for
ro-ro ports and the highways linking them.
Under the plan, the government will expand the coverage
of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway (SRNH) through
the completion of vital links of the Western, Eastern
and Central Nautical Highways. The identified nautical
highways and the priority routes are composed of new
and existing ro-ro ports/links.
Patdu said following the strategy employed in the SRNH,
the Department of Transportation and Communications
will implement programs including the establishment
of new ro-ro ports and ro-ro shipping services with
priority being given to the private sector or private
sector/local government unit partnership while government
should only invest in ro-ro port infrastructure, if
and when private sector/LGU interest and investment
is insufficient or non-existent; improve existing ro-ro
ports by upgrading berthing facilities, terminals and
services; and privatize government-owned ro-ro ports.
The priority ro-ro routes under the 2005-2010 MTPDP
for the Western Nautical Highway include the routes
between Dipolog/Dapitan-Dumaguete; Dumaguete-Santander,
Cebu; Toledo-San Carlos City; Bacolod-Iloilo; Caticlan-Roxas,
Mindoro Oriental; and Calapan-Batangas.
The road system, on the other hand, includes the Oroquieta
City-Dapitan City-Dipolog City; Samboan-Barili-Toledo
City; San Carlos-Dumaguete; Dumaguete-Bacolod City;
Dumaguete-Bais-Mabinay-Kabankalan-Bacolod; Dumaguete
North-San Carlos Coastal-Bacolod North; Bacolod-Iloilo
City; Iloilo City-Caticlan (Aklan); Iloilo City-Passi-Calinog-Ivisan-Kalibo-Nabas-Caticlan;
Iloilo East Coast-Capiz; and Roxas-Calapan, Mindoro
Oriental.
For the Central Nautical Highway, priority routes are
Balingoan, Misamis Oriental, Guinsiliban, Camiguin;
Mambajao, Camiguin-Jagna, Bohol; Tubigon, Bohol-Cebu
City; Toledo-San Carlos City; Dumaguete-Santander, Cebu;
Bogo, Cebu-Placer, Masbate; Aroroy, Masbate-Donsol,
and Sorsogon.
The roads are Calinan, Davao-Buda, Bukidnon-Misamis
Oriental; Butuan City-Agusan del Norte-Misamis Oriental;
Guinsiliban-Mambajao, Camiguin; Jagna-Tubigon, Bohol;
Bohol Circumferencial; Loay Interior/Jagna-Sierra; Bullones-Clarin-Tubigon;
Cebu City-Toledo; San Carlos-Dumaguete; Samboan-Cebu
City; Cebu City-San Remigio, Cebu; Placer, Masbate-Aroroy,
Masbate; Boca Engano, Masbate-Claveria, and Masbate.
For the Eastern Nautical Highway, priorities are the
Surigao (Lipata)-Liloan, Southern Leyte; Naval, Biliran-Cataingan,
Masbate while the road links include the Davao-Compostela
Valley-(Alegria-Santiago, Bayugan-San Francisco-Trento-Monkayo)-Agusan-Surigao;
Liloan, Southern Leyte-Naval, Biliran Highway; Cataingan-Aroroy,
and Masbate Highway.
The RRTS originally identified 48 ro-ro links and provided
funding sufficient for the 96 terminals and ro-ro ships.
"With the issuance of Executive Order 170-A, the
scope has been expanded to include all ro-ro routes
and funding has been increased three-fold," Patdu
noted.
The MTPDP also provides for the creation of the Maritime
Equity Corp. of the Philippines to support full implementation
of the RRTS through the acquisition of modern ro-ro
vessels to be leased to qualified operators under a
lease purchase agreement.
THE deployment of government sea marshals
onboard passenger and passenger/cargo vessels trading
domestically is now optional on the part of shipping
operators.
In the recently issued Flag State Administration Advisory
No. 65, the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) has
ordered the designation of these marshals as discretionary.
MARINA administrator Vicente T. Suazo, Jr. said the
move will prevent any conflict among security officers
of shipping operators and their government counterparts,
including the riding public.
However, he stressed the designation of a company-maritime
marshal will remain compulsory.
The maritime agency deferred an earlier order making
the deployment of government-counterpart maritime marshals
compulsory, following a shoot out between officers of
SuperFerry 16 and sea marshals in Davao recently.
Suazo said many passengers also complained of the abusive
behavior of government marshals.
Meanwhile, MARINA identified alternative or equivalent
security measures operators must comply with, including
the placement of adequate security measures within the
passenger termi-nal, such as x-ray machines, detectors
or K-9 dogs.
WAN HAI LINES wi1l 1aunch its third
China-USWC service in May in partnership with Sinotrans
under a space-swap arrangement. With the new service,
Wan Hai Lines has again taken another forward step in
the company's China-USWC service deployment.
Wan Hai has rapidly expanded its services from intra
Asia to long-haul services in recent years. In response
to the growing trade demand between China and the US,
service deployments are mainly centered on China. Wan
Hai currently operates two other services connecting
USWC to South and East China.
In May, Wan Hai Lines teamed up with Sinotrans through
a slot exchange on the transpacific service. Port calls
for Wan Hai's CTP service are: Xiamen, Yantian, Hong
Kong, Kaohsiung, Los Angeles, Oakland, Yantian. Sinotrans
CAS service: Shanghai, Pusan, Long Beach, Shanghai.
As this is WHL's second USWC service from Shanghai,
it will complement WHL's current service network and
provide more flexible options to customers.
