CEBU CITY (PNA) – Three shipping groups in Cebu have jointly asked the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) Board of Directors to repeal Circular 2009-18 which effectively grounds the entire fleet of a shipping company involved in a sea mishap.

“We are not in favor of the policy of grounding the entire fleet in the event of an accident involving one vessel,” said the heads of the following associations, namely, the Visayan Association of Ferryboat and Coastwise Service Operators (VAFCSO), Philippine RORO Operations Association Inc. (PROA) and the United Trampers Association of the Philippines (UTAP) in a letter to the Board.

VAFCSO President Kenneth Sy of Trans Asia Shipping Lines, PROA President Rexter C. Tupas and UTAP President Benson Go sent the letter, dated Sept. 29, to the board through Department of Transportation and Communication Secretary Leandro Mendoza, who is also Marina Board Chairman.

They said that while they fully understand Marina’s mandate and the need to prevent loss of lives and cargoes, ship owners’ interests should not be totally scrapped in the rush to quell public backlash each time maritime accidents happen.

The grounding of fleets of ships has no basis in law and is not a condition mentioned in the circulars issued by Marina for the Ship Safety Inspection System Manual, they said.

“Compliance with the law and circulars should work both ways. If Marina expects the ship owners to toe the line and strictly adhere to its rules and circulars, then, the Authority should lead by example and follow its own rules,” the groups said.

The groups also argued that fleet grounding is bad for the economy as it results to higher transport cost and higher prices of commodities. Ultimately, they underlined, the public will have to bear the brunt of these escalating prices.

Another possible consequence of Circular 2009-18 is that it might derail the banking system as majority, if not all, of the vessels operated by different shipping companies are financed by banking institutions.

“The grounding of the entire fleet will mean zero income for the ship owners. A day’s loss of income will mean a lot, especially for heavily-financed industries like the domestic shipping industry. One can just imagine the catastrophic effect on the banking industry if big shipping companies, like Sulpicio Lines Inc. and Aboitiz Shipping, will default in the servicing of its loans. Surely, Marina does not wish to contribute to the aggravation of our already volatile banking sector,” the firms wrote.

A third consequence pointed out by said groups is fleet grounding will mean loss of jobs for workers of the affected shipping firm.