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Sunday, August 27, 2006
Cabaero: Dealing with the blame later
By Nini B. Cabaero
Beyond 30
The proclamation of a national calamity due to the oil spill off Guimaras is supposed to be reassuring. It means national resources are to be used to address the emergency.
The total result of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s declaration here last Friday was, however, not reassuring. After she issued it, she quickly said that pinpointing responsibility for the accident could be done later.
How can the blame for an accident of such magnitude be relegated to something that could be addressed later? The President said, “Let us do what has to be done first and deal with the blame later.”
Such statement can be misconstrued as postponing any action against, or giving leeway to, oil giant Petron Corp. and the owner of the sunken vessel, MT Solar 1.
Arroyo was in Cebu over the weekend to keynote the convention of the National Prosecutors’ League of the Philippines. It was uncanny that while speaking before prosecutors, she would say that prosecution of those responsible for the oil spill be tackled later. In effect, she told them prosecutors could do their job on this one later.
In the same speech, Arroyo urged Filipinos to cooperate and do their part in the cleanup of the biggest and worst oil spill to affect the country. She said the Task Force Guimaras should work with the private sector to collect human hair and chicken feathers that are known to absorb oil in water.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, who accompanied Arroyo, explained the reasons behind the declaration. He was quoted in a Sun.Star Cebu report as saying, “It is a state of national calamity because of the ramifications of the oil spill. It cannot be determined at this time. For as long as the vessel is under sea and we have not re-floated the vessel or siphoned out the contents, the bigger disaster can still happen.”
The sinking of the oil tanker was an accident brought about by bad weather, but it does not mean both Petron and shipping company Sunshine Maritime Development Corp. could not be made answerable. They should answer not only for the costs of the cleanup but also for possible legal culpability.
Earlier reports showed that the tanker already encountered problems early on in its trip. At that first sign of danger, it should not have continued its voyage.
There are ways to move forward in the effort to address this calamity without forgetting that some laws may have been violated.
The investigation into culpability could begin immediately. What government could do is to ensure that the probe would not delay operations to mitigate the damage caused by the oil spill.
(ninicab@sunstar.com.ph)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (August 27, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
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