THE House transportation oversight committee on the roll on-roll off port system asked the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) to stop collecting “questionable” port fees from the Tabuelan port.
During the oversight committee hearing in Tabuelan town on Tuesday, April 2, the Committee found out that for five years, the CPA has been collecting its share from the port fees in Tabuelan without any legal basis.
House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, committee chairman Rep. Peter Unabia (Misamis Oriental, 1st) and Cebu Reps. Gwen Garcia (3rd) and Benhur Salimbangon (4th) attended the hearing.
It was established that in 2004, the CPA and the local government of Tabuelan entered into a 10-year compromise agreement that allowed the CPA to collect a 40 percent share from the fees collected from cargo owners and passengers using the Tabuelan port.
The local government of Tabuelan had formally asked the CPA to lower its share collection to 20 percent upon the expiration of the compromise agreement in 2014, but it has yet to be acted upon by the body.
In the meantime, despite the lapse of the compromise agreement, the CPA continues to collect its 40 percent share of the revenues.
This prompted Garcia to express dismay over the arrangement, saying it has caused suffering to the people of Tabuelan who had been deprived of the income to which they were legally entitled as early as 2014.
“This is a strange situation we are finding ourselves in. You continue to collect on the 10-year MOA that has long expired, five years ago. Are you not estopped now? Why are you collecting? How is this justified?” Garcia asked.
Garcia said since 2004, when the compromise agreement expired, the CPA had collected some P35 million from Tabuelan without any legal or documentary basis to do so.
She then moved to stop the CPA from further collecting its 40 percent share until there is a new agreement between the agency and the local government unit.
This was adopted by members of the committee, including Speaker Arroyo.
But CPA General Manager Angelo Verdan disagreed.
Even if the MOA had expired, Verdan said, the CPA, as owner of the port, is still entitled to a share of the income of the Port of Tabuelan.
CPA owns ports
In an interview on Wednesday, April 3, Verdan said it is clear under Republic 7621 or the CPA Charter, which was signed into law on June 26, 1992, that the CPA is the owner of all ports in Cebu, whether it was constructed by a local government unit (LGU) or a private individual or company.
He said there are ports operated either by the LGU or a company in Barangay Daanlungsod in Toledo City, San Fernando town, Pulangbato in the City of Bogo, Santander and Carmen. The CPA also gets a share of these ports’ income, though the sharing scheme stated in the MOA varies.
The MOA between the CPA and the Tabuelan Municipal Government, which was in effect from March 2, 2004 to March 2, 2014, was initiated by the Toledo City Regional Trial Court (RTC) after the CPA filed a case against the Tabuelan Municipal Government seeking to take over the port from the LGU.
He agreed with the legislators, though, that Tabuelan should not collect fees for arrastre and stevedoring services because it’s a roll on-roll off (roro) port and there is no need for personnel or equipment to lift the cargoes.
Verdan said he is conducting an inquiry on why the MOA was not renewed. He also wants to find out how much the CPA has received from Tabuelan.
The oversight committee on the roro conducted the hearing in Tabuelan after it was reported during the oversight hearings that the Tabuelan port was one of the ports charging stevedoring and handling fees without providing any of the services.
Speaker Arroyo said the undue fees being collected by the CPA from Tabuelan is the reason such fees were being imposed.
With the cessation of the collection of the CPA share from the income of Tabuelan, the local government had promised to lower its fees and discontinue its collection of stevedoring and handling fees. (PR, EOB)