Breaktime
Natural calumny
By Conrado R. Banal III
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:32:00 07/17/2008
We jerked our knee again all the way up to another galaxy, after the sinking of the Sulpicio Lines ferry MV Princess of the Stars. Well, it was such a huge issue in the media that the government simply must do something to appease the mob.
And so the authorities “suspended” the shipping line. Nice.
I am not sure if the guys here in my neighborhood like such an automatic, mechanical reaction of our public officials to the mishap. Everybody knew it was just a nice cover-up for the inefficiency of our maritime and weather authorities.
For who should suffer from such a suspension? I’m certain they are NOT the stockholders of Sulpicio Lines. Those people will not miss a single meal, not even a snack, because we prevented their vessels from delivering food and other necessities all around the archipelago.
Based on media reports, the shipping firm accounts for about 40 percent of our domestic sea cargo.
My info is that the more reliable estimate is between 28 and 30 percent. Still, it is a sizable share, enough to affect the supply chain for food and what have you. And we all know of course what a shortage of anything can do to prices.
OK, the authorities suspended only the passenger vessels of the company, making sure that, for economic reasons, its pure cargo ships continued to sail.
Do I have news for you! Of the total cargo load of Sulpicio, those passenger vessels (versus the pure cargo vessels) actually account for more than half. Uh-oh.
Now, the trucking industry in Manila is also likely to lose business as a result of our jerky knee. About 25 percent of the truckers’ business in North Harbor alone comes from the “suspended” shipping line.
And so aren’t the authorities happy yet? Gosh, the last time I checked, the sinking was a direct result of a natural calamity. There was a typhoon, a super strong one, which even killed thousands of other people, destroyed whole towns and sank hundreds of other vessels. Why are we zeroing in on a single incident? Hmm.
* * *
By the way, you must have detected an element of calumny in the report of insurer Lloyds of London, regarding the track record of “accidents” of Sulpicio.
It was a fed item, if you know what I mean, for it was rather deficient in accuracy. For instance, it lists a vessel, the MV Carmen, in the mishap record. The vessel did not belong to Sulpicio, okay?
Plus, since the list was meant as a background for insurance men, it did not specify those 45 incidents involving Sulpicio vessels. For instance, one incident caused by a welding contractor while the Sulpicio vessel was undergoing maintenance on dry dock, was listed in the Lloyds report.
As for the infamous MV Doña Paz, it was proven that the mishap was the fault of an unregistered oil tanker that collided with the Sulpicio vessel, which was of course, as Sulpicio would readily admit, really overloaded.
But the question was, and still is, how come Sulpicio got away with the overloading?
I think it is about time that we come out with a list of all mishaps involving all shipping lines in this country, and let us try to analyze them. Maybe we can compare the track records of all these shipping lines.
Methinks it is the only way for us to improve on maritime safety.
* * *
At least 50,000 families in Aklan, Capiz, Antique, and Romblon—the provinces hardest hit by Typhoon “Frank”—can expect $500,000 (or more than P22 million) worth of food items donated by the beverage and food group San Miguel Corp.
That is on top of the company’s immediate reaction of sending food to Iloilo, Bago City, and Cebu right after the disastrous typhoon.
The donation will consist of various food items such as canned goods, instant noodles, coffee and bottled water.
“Many of our countrymen in these provinces are still struggling to survive the aftermath of Typhoon Frank,” says San Miguel president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang. “Right now, hunger is a very real problem in these provinces and we would like to help address this.”
The donation will surely help the people in those provinces in their day-to-day survival needs for now. What about something for them to stand up again?
“We hope to do some things that will make some difference in their struggle to rebuild their lives,” Ang says.
Now, here is a tip to the people in those provinces: The Department of Social Welfare and Development will channel San Miguel food donations through the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Councils. Just so you will know who to call.
* * *
The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) said that under the law it could remit dividends to the national coffer, since such a remittance would not affect the social fund of GSIS members.
A dismissed GSIS employee named Albert Velasco filed a complaint before the Ombudsman on a P1 billion in GSIS dividend payment to the government in December 2004. That was almost four years ago. What timing!
Anyway, according to GSIS chief legal counsel Estrella Elamparo, Republic Act No. 656 requires the GSIS to remit its surplus earnings in its so-called “general insurance fund,” as against “social insurance fund,” to the government.
The benefits of GSIS members come from the “social insurance fund.”
That is why the GSIS members also received dividends of about P850 million in that same month. So what was the problem?
Well, it only goes to show the senselessness of the claim in that Ombudsman complaint that the GSIS raided the funds of GSIS members to remit P1 billion to the government.
The last time the GSIS remitted dividends to the government was in 1997, during the time of former President Fidel V. Ramos.
Nobody is making even just a pipsqueak about it until now. Hmmm.
* * *
The P9-billion St. Luke’s Medical Center at Fort Bonifacio Global City has just held a “topping-off” ceremony, more than three years after its groundbreaking in February 2005.
Among the guests were members of the hospital’s board of trustees led by chairman Robert Kuan and president Jose Ledesma, together with Fernando Zobel de Ayala and Jaime Ayala (of the Ayala group), Butch Campos (of Fort Bonifacio Development Corp.), and Taguig City Vice Mayor George Elias.
You know—some big names! Watch out, Makati Medical Center!
The hospital is slated for completion in October 2009 yet, occupying the 1.6-hectare prime lot at the Fort, with some 600 patient beds.
In the “topping-off” ceremony, cement was shoveled into the upper deck of the 14-story hospital, which will actually become a helipad, meaning, it will be capable of receiving the fastest medical emergency transportation on earth so far, big enough for a Huey helicopter.
The hospital will also have parking space for 1,400 vehicles. Really, Makati Med, watch out!
Previous columns:
Mickey’s mouse - 07/15/2008
Race to the finest - 06/24/2008
Horse raisin - 6/17/2008
Horse raisin - 17/06/2008
What’s up, duck? - 06/10/2008
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