Aboitiz appeals suspension

MANILA, Philippines - The Aboitiz Transport System (ATS) appealed to the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) yesterday to exclude four of its 10 vessels from suspension, arguing that the ships had passed re-inspection this year.

 In a five-page motion for reconsideration filed by ATS legal counsels Arthur Lim and Ma. Victoria Lim-Florido, the company said that M/V SuperFerry 19, M/V Superferry 12, M/V Cebu Ferry 1 and M/V Cebu Ferry 2 all underwent the Marina re-inspection and audit this year. 

 They said subjecting the ships to another round of re-inspection would only be a “wasteful duplication of time.”

 “The suspension before considering a show cause explanation is putting the cart before the horse. In this case, the immediate suspension included the vessels that recently undergone and passed re-inspection and audit of Marina,” ATS said in its motion.

 The shipping firm added that the instruction to immediately suspend all the 10 passenger-cargo ships “is tantamount to a prejudgment against the respondents without a hearing, and before knowing the cause or causes of the incident.”

 They added that each and every vessel was issued by Marina with its own Passenger Ship Safety Certificate indicating that it complied with the Philippine Merchant Marine Rules and Regulations (PMMRR) and that all the life rafts and the Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS) equipment and devices have all been checked and approved.

 Secondly, the ATS asked they remove from the Show Cause any implication or suggestion that the deficiencies that might be found in the ill-fated SuperFerry 9 exist in the nine other vessels.

 They also asked that they conduct a table of audit of the International Safety Management (ISM) documents of the shipping firm and its compliance with ISM requirements before conducting a physical re-inspection and ISM audit.

 Lastly, in the event that they would proceed with the re-inspection and ISM audit, they should inform the ATS so they could synchronize the vessels’ voyages and avoid the disruption of service as much as possible.

 Citing these four reasons, ATS asked that the Show Cause issued last Sept. 7 be “reconsidered” and a new one be issued.

 Aboitiz Equity Venture president and chief executive officer Erramon Aboitiz, in an interview with reporters in Davao, said they have no problem with complying with what the government requires them to do and are willing to subject themselves to investigation. – With Edith Regalado, Roel Pareno, Jaime Laude, Dennis Carcamo, Paolo Romero