Dormant PPA tracking proposal pushed anew
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA -A national organization of 15 local trucker operator associations has asked the government to immediately implement an order digitizing port operations to eliminate “abusive” charges by international shipping lines, which are estimated to be in billions of pesos annually.
The Confederation of Truckers Association of the Philippines (CTAP), in a letter dated May 16 and addressed to the Department of Transportation and Philippine Ports Authority, requested that the proposed Trusted Operator Program-Container Registry and Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS) be up and running the soonest.
The implementation of TOP-CRMS has been deferred amid criticisms that it would bloat the already expensive logistics costs.
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Opposed by industries
Patrick Ronas, president of Association of International Shipping Lines, previously said that the imposition of TOP-CRMS would yield additional spending of at least P35 billion annually for import cost. These would likely be passed on the consumers by increasing prices of goods and services, he explained.
But the CTAP believes otherwise. “We strongly support the call of President Marcos and the committee on public services to lower the cost of logistics in our country,” it said.
The TOP-CRMS, which is under the administrative order (AO) 04-2021, seeks to digitize port operations to lower logistics costs and tighten monitoring of cargo movements. The AO calls for the eradication of container deposits as well, which are being collected by foreign shipping lines from the importers, to alleviate the financial burden.
CTAP calculates that 40-foot (ft) containers are slapped with unregulated charges of P90,000 per day while 20-footers, P50,000.
On an annual basis, the total charges accumulate to around P108 billion for 40-footers and P60 billion for 20-footers. The computation assumes that 4,000 containers are being handled daily.
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These costs include container handling charge, import release fee, cleaning container fee, peak season surcharge, container imbalance charge and operation service cost charge.
Apart from the costs, CTAP noted that container deposits are being returned by shipping lines not earlier than three months.
“Millions accumulate in container deposits which could have been utilized by logistics companies for its operations,” the industry group said.
It also lamented that container yards are not ready to accept the return of empty containers on the scheduled dates. As such, truckers take several trips around the facility before a slot is opened, which means more spending on fuel.
“We strongly believe that TOP-CRMS will put an end to the abuses of the international shipping lines in the imposition of their destination charges and will effectively regulate the mismanagement of empty containers,” CTAP stressed.
A pet project of the Philippine Ports Authority, the proposed container tracking and monitoring system has been opposed by at least 17 other business groups, which went as far as urging lawmakers and even President Marcos to intervene and stop its implementation, saying the scheme was unnecessary and too costly.
These groups include the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc., the Philippine Exporters Confederation, the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc., the Philippine Multimodal Transport and Logistics Association Inc., the Alliance of Concerned Truck Owners and Organizations, and the Alliance of Container Yard Operators of the Philippines. — with Alden M. Monzon
