Philippine Ports Authority | INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Local business groups opposing the Philippine Port Authority’s (PPA) planned cargo container monitoring system have cheered the Anti-Red Tape Authority’s (Arta) unfavorable assessment of the measure, seeing it as a major blow to the government agency’s plan and an affirmation of the negative impact it will bring.
The Alliance of Concerned Truck Owners and Organizations, Association of International Shipping Lines, and the Alliance of Container Yard Operators of the Philippines over the weekend hailed Arta’s decision, citing that the results of its reevaluation of the regulatory impact statement on the proposed implementing operational guidelines of the Trusted Operator Program-Container Registry and Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS) unequivocally highlighted the multiple flaws in PPA’s proposition.
“The business community commends Arta’s unwavering dedication to protecting the interests of stakeholders and fostering a conducive environment for economic growth as mandated by the Ease of Doing Business Law or Republic Act 11032,” said the three trade associations in a statement.
“Arta has unequivocally put the final nail in the coffin of TOP-CRMS,” they added.
In a letter to the PPA dated July 25, a copy of which was provided by the three to the Inquirer on Saturday, Arta said that the fees associated with the TOP-CRMS “will entail additional costs to stakeholders, particularly in relation to the utilization of PPA-authorized container staging facility outside the ports.”
The government agency task with ensuring the ease of doing business in the country also said that the collection of additional fees by requiring accreditation of stakeholders under the system highlights the conflicting mandates of the PPA as regulator and port operator
The Arta also cited that there was “no sound legal and empirical basis to establish the need for the new regulation, noting that the PPA itself admitted that there is no port congestion that would warrant this manner of intervention.
Despite this unfavorable assessment of the regulation, Arta said the implementation of the TOP-CRMS is still at the discretion of the PPA general manager and its board.