Villar seeks free freight services for relief goods deliveries

MANILA, Philippines — Las Piñas Rep. Camille Villar has filed a bill seeking free freight services for organizations that are transporting “emergency goods and donated articles” to areas hit by disasters or placed under a state of calamity.

Villar authored House Bill 9345 in the hope that freight forwarders, common and private carriers, and other companies could provide free logistic services for calamity victims as a “humanitarian act.”

The bill stated that it is “utterly challenging for impacted individuals to bounce back from calamities, and the most immediate support that they can get should not go unhampered by freight cost consequences.”

Villar said in a statement the act would also “strengthen the spirit of bayanihan among Filipinos, in that the immediate needs of people affected by such catastrophic events are promptly provided – both by the government and the private sector partners – in the most economical, reliable, speedy, and secured manner.”

“It would be a form of commitment and willingness to help on the part of freight companies and carriers to help the affected communities in times of calamities by forgoing freight costs,” she added.

Under the measure, the Office of Civil Defense, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and the Department of Transportation, in coordination with Philippine Postal Corp. and all freight companies, common carriers, private carriers, freight forwarders and other companies will be mandated to offer logistic services to give freight services at no cost.

However, these organizations will have to be  duly registered relief organizations recognized by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The measure also provides that shipping auxiliary costs, such as arrastre services, pilotage and other port charges that are regularly passed on to customers, shall be free of charge.

The bill puts the NDRRMC to the task of providing security and traffic management assistance to relief operations to facilitate the “speedy movement of people, goods and equipment to the affected population and responding agencies.”

Villar underscored that in times of calamities, it is important to also help the government and private sectors ensure the efficient delivery of relief goods and donations.