Singson welcomes Senate Poro Point inquiry

SAN FERNANDO, La Union — Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson welcomed yesterday the resolution of Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago seeking a Senate inquiry into the government’s takeover of Poro Point here.

"That is the best step to be taken and let the axe fall where it may," he said in a statement.

In fact, Singson said he has written to some senators to request them to conduct an investigation to bring out the truth in the Poro Point controversy.

"I do not know why some people insist on linking me to this issue. All I know is that the Poro Point Industrial Corp. (PPIC) is owned by a certain Mr. and Mrs. Manny Tan, who is a big-time rice trader and a very close friend of former President Estrada," he said.

The Tans, according to Singson, made a commitment to invest P840 million to develop the seaport.

Singson, however, bewailed that the PPIC has not undertaken any development project in the past eight years, which he said is a clear violation of its contract.

"He (Tan) gained control of the operation of the seaport in 1999 when Estrada was still in Malacañang," he said.

Singson asked: "Who are the protectors of Mr. and Mrs. Tan, and why are they being tolerated?"

He said he is optimistic that a full-blown Senate investigation will unearth all the facts related to the turnover of Poro Point from the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) to the Tan couple.

Singson said Poro Point should be managed by a well-qualified entity that could truly develop and expand its operation and services, which would eventually bring economic prosperity to the Ilocos region, if not the whole country.

San Fernando City Mayor Mary Jane Ortega, meanwhile, denounced the PPIC and its major shareholder, Bulk Handlers Inc. (BHI), for allegedly discharging waste materials from ships docked in the San Fernando seaport.

Ortega said she has repeatedly asked PPIC officials to address the problem but they have not taken any action.

Ortega said a multipartite monitoring team led by city environmental officer Valmar Valdez and Barangay Poro chairman Mary Ann Valero discovered that BHI was, indeed, dumping waste materials into the bay.

"I don’t care about the controversies. My only interest is good waste management at the seaport because it is affecting our marine life," she said.

Poro Point recently became embroiled in a controversy when the Philippine Ports Authority, acting on orders from Transportation and Communication Secretary Leandro Mendoza, tried to take over the port operations. But the PPIC resisted the move, showing a court-issued temporary restraining order.

The BCDA and its subsidiary, the Poro Point Management Corp. (PPMC), requested the PPA, through the DOTC, for the takeover in view of the cease-and-desist order issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to the PPIC for lacking an environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

But PPIC lawyer Brigido Dulay said the BCDA and PPMC were just using the ECC issue to hide their plans to take over the seaport.

Dulay said the BCDA, PPMC and the PPIC are "part shareholders" of Poro Point and are covered by a single ECC issued for the entire area, which used to be the John Hay Poro Point Special Economic and Freeport Zone.

"After seven years of partnership, why are they saying only now that we do not have an ECC?" he asked. — With Jun Elias and Vic Alhambra Jr.