Striking workers who were displaced numbering to about 500 have sought the help of President Aquino to revoke the P14 billion redevelopment project of the harbor forged during the time of President Arroyo which aimed to privatize the whole sea port.
The groups belonging to the United Dock Handlers Inc., North Star Development Corp., Interport Stevedoring and Pier 8 Arrastre and Stevedoring Arrastre Services Companby trooped to North Harbor in Tondo, Manila at 8 a.m. yesterday to urge the newly proclaimed President to review the said contract.
“It is time for P-Noy (President Noynoy) to fulfill his promise that he will study the supposed questionable transactions that the past administration has made. If he remains true to his word, he will immediately look into the redevelopment project contract of North Harbor,” said retired Leonardo Odoño, one of the maritime stakeholder in North Harbor and spokesman of the group.
They claimed that the deal between the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and Manila North Harbor Port Inc. (MNHPI) consortium, composed of Harbour Center Port Terminals, Inc. (HCPTI) and Metro Pacific Investment Corp. (MPIC), was questionable since the latter was the only bidder for the said redevelopment project.
Odono explained that under the law, there should be at least two bidders in any government-related projects before the actual bidding takes place.
“But in this case, the PPA declared a failure of bidding but the consortium went to court to stop this declaration. What is more surprising is that the PPA did not contest the court case and even entered a compromise agreement with the MNHPI consortium,” Odono stressed.
“It is the right of PPA to nullify the supposed bid of any bidder if there was only one qualifying bidder. Apparently, PPA continued with the bidding in exchange for the dropping of lawsuit of the consortium that the MNHPI filed against the agency,” he added.
The PPA also allegedly failed to verify if the MNHPI had the capacity to stand by its responsibility and obligations under the contract it entered.
“There is labor unrest over the loss of jobs and payment of separation benefits and serious concerns of shipping lines over the inadequacy of the MNHPI for the job of redeveloping North harbor,” he lamented. Pat C. Santos, Daily Tribune
Invoke Article 33 of the ILO constitution
against the military junta in Myanmar
to carry out the 2021 ILO Commission of Inquiry recommendations
against serious violations of Forced Labour and Freedom of Association protocols.
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