Poro Point conspiracy?

By now, our readers must be familiar with the saga of the Poro Point seaport — the facility dubbed by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) as one of the most efficient and most inexpensive port facilities in the country.

It will be recalled that the Poro Point seaport was the object of a take-over plot hatched by the Poro Point Management Corp. (PPMC), a subsidiary of the beleaguered Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA). The San Fernando City court thwarted that plot following an uproar in the La Union business community. The last we heard was that BCDA and PPMC were both slapped with an injunction by the court.

For a while, the La Union and Northern Luzon communities thought they could go about their business in peace with the court having ordered BCDA and PPMC to let things stay the way they are as far as Poro Point is concerned.

Or so they thought.

Last week, we heard that the new game plan is to go around the court injunction. It appears there is a "conspiracy" of sorts to trivialize the court order, run circles around it and have the BCDA and PPMC grab control of the Poro Point seaport, never mind that there is a valid contract with a private operator for its management. It was signed way back in 1999 when the current BCDA and PPMC bosses were not yet in their current posts.

The first evidence of the "conspiracy" appears to be a surprising order from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) stopping the private operator from further operating the port on the excuse that the facility does not have an environmental clearance certificate. The La Union business community found the DENR move quite puzzling since there was no such requirement when the government awarded the management of the seaport to its private operator. Out of the blue, the order pops out at the heels of the aborted PPMC take-over.

With all due respect to the DENR — but it can’t be helped but for the public to believe its move is part of a sinister plot to abrogate a valid contract. Never mind that there is a court order telling everyone to stay put. Is DENR being used as a pawn in the ongoing conflict between BCDA and PPMC on one hand and La Union businessmen on the other?

Another government agency that is rumored to be part of the "Poro Point conspiracy" is the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA). My sources tell me that  the BCDA and PPMC have been moving heaven and earth to return  Poro Point seaport to the PPA by lobbying for the issuance of an executive order transferring the jurisdiction of the Poro seaport from BCDA back to the PPA.

We hope this latest round of speculation is not true. Because if it is, the BCDA would not only be violating a serious court injunction; it would create another wave of fear among investors in that region.  A whimsical seizure might just send the wrong signals to other investors in Northern Luzon triggering an exodus of investments and capital.

Here are some points to consider. Prior to BCDA taking over Poro Point in 1997, the facility was actually under PPA management. PPA turned over the 15.3-hectare seaport to BCDA in 1997 so it could be an asset in the development of Northern Luzon. Then, in 1998, BCDA signed up a private sector partner to form a consortium called Poro Point Industrial Corp. (PPIC) to develop the area and manage the port operations.

It appears the transfer of the Poro Point seaport from PPA to BCDA and to PPIC was a good idea after all. Not only did the government start generating significant revenues — Poro Point has actually become a major alternative port giving its Metro Manila-based rivals a run for their money.

Consider this: it was the PPA study itself which showed that Poro Point seaport’s basic port charges are 170 percent lower than the Port of Manila. Moreover, Poro Point seaport, the PPA study said, is more efficient than its Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Subic rivals.

If by PPA’s own acknowledgment Poro Point seaport is better managed by the private operator, why the reported BCDA move to transfer it back to PPA?

The other news leaking out of BCDA is that BCDA chair Filadelfo Singson-Rojas wants to become chair of PPIC too. This bit of news has sent shivers to the La Union business community since it is common knowledge there that the plot to seize control of Poro Point seaport prominently featured Singson-Rojas and his relative and PPMC president Felix Singson-Racadio.

Why would Singson-Rojas want to be chair of an agency he himself wants to abolish and whose contract with BCDA he apparently wants to abrogate?

When the earlier BCDA-PPMC plot to take over Poro Point seaport was uncovered, media reports said the La Union community was angered by the apparent lack of respect for business covenants.

If the entry of Singson-Rojas to PPIC is true, as well as the reported plan to give the port back to PPA, then there also appears to be a great propensity to disrespect the courts.

At the end of the day, the question that every La Union businessman is asking is this: why the apparent obsession on the part of BCDA and PPMC to grab control of the Poro Point seaport? Is there a compelling reason? If there is one, it is definitely not for reasons of performance. The port is making money for the government.

And if it is not for reasons of performance, then what is? Compelling political reasons? If yes, whose political interests does the Singson-Rojas and Singson-Racadio faction represent? How about former AFP Chief of Staff and now BCDA president Narciso Abaya?

The next question is: who really is in control of BCDA? Is it Chairman Singson-Rojas or General Abaya?

We pray this scenario is not true. It is when politics dictate on business that things go awry. Why disturb Poro Point seaport? Can’t we leave things that work well alone?

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