Friday, July 18, 2008 Tomas slams bid to sail ships again under present managers
UNLESS the management of what he described as “the most dangerous shipping lines in the whole world” is changed, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña will not endorse calls to allow Sulpicio Lines Inc. to resume operations.
Shipping organizations printed newspaper advertisements yesterday appealing to President Arroyo to recall the suspension order on Sulpicio Lines.
Osmeña, however, said he will ask the President not to allow the Cebu-based shipping company to continue operating its fleet of passenger vessels, lest 800 others will die in another tragedy.
The mayor said he was angered by what he described as the company’s lack of concern for the safety of its ships and passengers.
In a press statement, Sulpicio management appealed to the mayor for fairness and asked that the legal and judicial processes that are in progress be respected.
Sulpicio, they said, is cooperating with authorities while assisting all those who were affected by the tragedy, as well as its 2,000 regular employees.
Record
In his news conference yesterday, he said that Sulpicio Lines chief executive officer and executive vice president Carlos Go asked him to endorse to Arroyo the resumption of their operations even if authorities have yet to close the investigation on the sinking of the mv Princess of the Stars.
Sulpicio Lines, he said, “is the most dangerous shipping lines in the whole world,” being the record holder for sea tragedies with the most number of victims.
Osmeña said a takeover by government is not necessary and the change in management may involve only members of the family.
“I will not give my endorsement until I see a change in the attitude or the management of Sulpicio Lines. And what does he (Carlos Go) say? He said the younger generation is not ready yet because they don’t know about the finances. You see, it’s all about money,” he told a news conference.
“He’s pleading for me to give my endorsement because the economy is suffering, the businesses are losing... Tan-awa ra, mukhang pera. And frankly speaking, I’m angry,” said the mayor.
Changes
Osmeña said he has kept quiet all this time but was forced to speak for the 800 victims of the mv Princess of the Stars sinking when businessmen came out with advertisements in the newspapers appealing to the President to allow Sulpicio vessels to operate.
If the businessmen are concerned only about their businesses, Osmeña said his main concern is the safety of passengers.
“Most of the discussions regarding Sulpicio right now are all about money. As mayor of Cebu City, let’s talk about the safety of the passengers and what changes have been made to ensure that Sulpicio will be able to get out of this rotten record of having so many victims,” he said.
The mayor is set to inform Arroyo of his sentiments on the matter and will tell her not to allow the resumption of operations until the management is changed.
“I will tell the President that she is responsible. She is the president of the rich, she should also be the president of the poor. She has to have a balance,” he said.
“We respect the good mayor’s views and appeal to his sense of fairness... We plead for sobriety and fairness in this emotionally-charged situation and focus on addressing the painful aftermath of the tragedy that has befallen us,” the Sulpicio statement read.
Experience
Osmeña also hit the Provincial Government, businessmen and owners of shipping lines who are asking government to allow Sulpicio vessels to operate, saying they did not help in the rescue and relief operations by sending their own vessels.
The mayor admitted he does not know Ryan Go personally but he believes his experience in dealing with the victims’ families has taught him a lesson that will improve the management of the shipping company.
“I don’t know him but I like him because he faced the people. He was the only one in the family who was willing to face the victims’ families, and you know what that tells me? It tells me that this guy will be terrified to go through all of that again, that’s why I think this guy should be president. He has undergone so much trauma that he will make sure he will not go through all of that over again,” he added.
Meanwhile, Eduardo Gonzales, Visayan Association of Ferryboat and Coastwise Service Operators (VAFCSO) vice president, said the general public has suffered due to the lack of passenger vessels.
Gonzales said that it seemed Marina, under Administrator Vicente Suazo Jr., is making the suspension of Sulpicio operations “indefinite.”
VAFCSO, the Philippine Roro Shipping Shipping Associations Inc. and the United Trampers Association of the Philippines put out a joint advertisement in several newspapers yesterday asking the President to lift the suspension on Sulpicio.
The groups said the suspension is taking a toll on the industry, affecting not only the passenger and cargo sector but also other shipping operators, including those in inter-island transport.
Gonzales said passengers and cargo ferried by Sulpicio Lines vessels from Manila to Cebu are also transported by smaller vessels with routes to Bohol, Leyte, Samar, Masbate and other provinces.
The problem with Marina, Gonzales said, is that they have not set a deadline to finish the audit of the vessels. (LCR/EOB)
