Port congestion is a disease

(Second of two parts)

The solution to the port congestion problem is to impose a moratorium on all measures that have been implemented. Though the actions taken by the government are laudable—and should under normal times be supported— we must at some point address the traffic situation.

We must at some point address the road worthiness of the trucks and trailers carrying our cargo. We must address at some point the integrity of the importer, who is he and make sure he is not a criminal element or a smuggler of illicit goods and more importantly that everyone pays taxes.

Not right now

But the question is, should we have done this all at the same time? The time to address these questions of transparency and others is not now.

Would it have not been better that we address each problem individually on a staggered basis before diving into two or three major issues, thereby creating an economic epidemic that may be much more difficult to solve?

All parties should return to the status quo before the first of a series of events that led to the port epidemic.

All the actions in reference to traffic, truck/trailer road worthiness, complete and correct registration of duly recognized importers for security and revenue issues, road widening and repair are very laudable and worthwhile projects, but they cannot be done all at the same time by a bureaucracy that does not have proper management and manpower support to upgrade these projects.

In the franchising of trucks that are 15 years or below or other modernization measures, a moratorium of at least five years must be undertaken because the trucking community cannot re-fleet a whole nation with the pending Asean integration in a year or two.

There is a need to implement a moratorium on all these changes of policies and road improvements until we can come up with a complete management plan with time tables and work milestones in a workable and detailed plan of action.

The problem today is not the increase in vehicular traffic as that has existed in Metro Manila for many decades.

The problem is the port congestion that will increase prices, stunt the nation’s growth and development, and lead to citizenry discontent due to the decrease in the buying power of the peso or the “shrinking pan de sal” phenomenon.

How do we solve the problem?

1) Return the truck ban to the normal hours, review the routes and improve the travel of the cargoes through the arteries of Metro Manila. This has been done in Manila.

2) Secure a moratorium on the franchising requirements. Implement a monthly quota so that the LTFRB is not faced with an administrative nightmare in working on 20,000 franchises in one month.

Moreover, give trucking firms enough time to be monetarily and physically capable of replacing their units with newer models.

It would also be best to improve the capability of the LTO to check the roadworthiness of truck units so that older trucks with valid safety records can perhaps continue operating.

3) Coordinate road repairs and others, like road closures and road widening projects. It would also be wise to have a greater perspective of the requirements of all stakeholders on the road.

Rising prices

4) Deal with the rising prices of trucking. Prices will probably not go down as that industry has long been suppressed or pushed down by the demands of the importers to lower costs.

With diesel prices where they are and the fact that each container truck costs around P1.5 million second-hand and a 10-wheeler unit needs P14,000 a tire times 10, the present costs of trucking have probably reached their realistic pricing range as the prices of this industry were rock bottom for many years and a realistic readjustment was forthcoming.

5) Reference the securing of the new Importer Clearance Certificate (ICC) and Account Management Office (AMO) with the Bureau of Customs (BOC), again, this must be done gradually either through a system like how we register motor vehicles on a monthly basis and not trying to register all the importers of a nation with a population of 100 million people and ask 18 to 20 people in a bureaucracy to take care of the paperwork and do so on time.

6) Continue to ask the shipping lines to consider using the Batangas Port and the Subic Bay Internal Port facility and focus major infrastructure projects to strengthen these areas of possible expansion.

Some good news is that Manila has returned the old truck ban hours, giving some sign to return to normalcy.

The ports are doing better by 30 percent on imports and 50 percent on exports and vessels are only 50 percent more than normal on anchorage before docking.

However, all these may change after Oct. 18, 2014 when many trucks lose their temporary franchise.

It would seem that LTFRB is amicable to a moratorium on the franchise measures if directed by DOTC.

As mandated, LTFRB claims it only follows the law and is not in a position to set policies.

BOC action

7) Strongly police the BOC and the authorities in and around the Ports of Manila to avoid any abuse of the powers vested in them in order for a smooth flow of goods in and around the metropolis.

The solutions are, in one word, a moratorium for a period of one to two years to work on recent government initiatives and already put forward a working management committee to check truck ban issues and road lanes, franchising issues (allow a five year re-fleeting program for trucking operators), a plan for road construction and the studying of BIR/BOC documentary policies and put forward a logistic masterplan for cargoes.

(The article reflects the personal opinion of the author and does not reflect the official stand of the Management Association of the Philippines. The author is the vice chair of the MAP National Security Committee and president of MOF Company (Subic) Inc. Feedback at <[email protected]> and < [email protected]> or < [email protected] >.