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Thursday, March 08, 2007
High court orders closure of Manila oil depots
MANILA -- Saying that it is prone to possible terrorist attack, the Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday directed the immediate shutdown of oil depots in Pandacan, Manila.
The SC's First Division directed Manila Mayor Jose "Lito" Atienza to implement Ordinance 8027, which sets forth the clearing of Pandacan district, classified as a residential area, of the facilities of big oil companies Shell, Petron and Caltex.
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"As the chief executive of the city, he (Atienza) has the duty to enforce Ordinance 8027 as long as it has not been repealed by the City Council or annulled by the courts. He has no other choice. It is his ministerial duty to do so," the court ruled. Associate Justice Renato Corona penned the decision.
The SC's decision granted the petition for mandamus filed by the political party Social Justice Society and several Manila residents seeking to compel the Manila City Government to enforce the ordinance.
The ordinance reclassifies portions of the Manila districts of Pandacan and Sta. Ana from industrial to commercial and directs certain business owners and operators of the three oil industry players to cease from operating their businesses within six months from the ordinance's effectivity date.
"Ordinance 8027 was enacted right after the Philippines, along with the rest of the world, witnessed the horror of the September 11, 2001 attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. The objective of the ordinance is to protect the residents of Manila from the catastrophic devastation that will surely occur in case of a terrorist attack on the Pandacan terminals. No reason why such a protective measure should be delayed," the SC said.
The high court held that under the Local Government Code of 1991, it is the duty of Atienza as city mayor to "enforce all laws and ordinances relative to the governance of the City," adding that the edict has not been repealed by the Manila City Council.
Concurring in the decision were Chief Justice Reynato Puno and Associate Justices Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, Adolfo Azcuna and Cancio Garcia.
Petitioners led by Vladmir Alarique Cabigao and Bonifacio Tumbokon filed the suit to compel Atienza to enforce his mandatory legal duty under Republic Act (RA) 7160 or the Local Government Code to implement the ordinance and order the removal of the oil terminals.
The ordinance was enacted by the Manila City Council on November 20, 2001 and was approved on November 28, 2001. It took effect on December 28, 2001.
The removal of the oil terminals from Pandacan however did not happen after the City Government and the Department of Energy (DOE) entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the oil companies, which agreed to just "scale down" the oil terminals.
Under the MOU, the oil firms should undertake removal or decommissioning process of 28 tanks starting with the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) spheres and the commencing of work on a safety buffer and green zones surrounding the terminals.
The oil firms agreed to establish joint operations and management of common and integrated areas consistent with international and domestic technical, safety, environmental and economic considerations and standards.
The City Council ratified the MOU through Resolution 97, which was effective only for a period of six months starting July 25, 2002.
On January 30, 2003, the City Council adopted Resolution 13 extending the validity of Resolution 97 to April 30, 2003 and authorizing Atienza to issue special business permits to the oil companies. The resolution also called for a reassessment of Ordinance 8027.
For his part, Atienza argued that the ordinance has been superseded by the MOU resolutions. However, he confessed that the ordinance remains valid and in full force since it is not inconsistent with the MOU.
The MOU, according to Atienza, should be considered as a mere guideline for the implementation of Ordinance 8027.
The three major fuel suppliers earlier asked the court to nullify another city ordinance that sought to evict them from the Pandacan oil depot.
Petron Corporation, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation and Chevron Philippines Inc. called for the repeal of Manila City Ordinance 8119 for having no legal basis.
The three fuel suppliers alleged that they are not covered by the ordinance, which reclassifies the Pandacan depot area from an industrial to a residential zone, as they claim that it's only the DOE that has the "primary authority to decide on matters pertaining to the Pandacan terminal."
The ordinance was to take effect on April 30, 2003 following the expiration of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed by the oil companies and Atienza that extended the depot's stay in Pandacan on a scaled-down basis. (ECV/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. (March 8, 2007 issue)
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