Chinese businesses are still in the running to take over a Subic Bay shipyard and could soon also control nearly 2 square miles of what was once America’s largest air base in the Philippines, according to local media reports.

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Philippines Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said the government would not, and could not, block Chinese offers to buy Subic Bay shipbuilder Hanjin Philippines, which has defaulted on $1.3 billion in loans, according to an April 25 Reuters news agency report.

Meanwhile, a Philippine government spokesman told the Asia Times April 27 that China will build an industrial park on the former Clark Air Base, north of Manila.

The industrial park project, which, according to CNN Philippines would encompass almost 2 square miles of the site, was first announced in a joint statement by Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping in November.

“The two sides will speed up the implementation of the Philippines-China Industrial Park Development Program, which was signed during this visit, and will continue to provide an enabling environment for their enterprises to invest in each other’s country,” the statement said.

The moves are symbolic, Patricio Abinales, a Philippines expert at the University of Hawaii, said in an email Tuesday.

“It is intended to show the US how much the Philippines is under [China’s] sway, this despite a majority of Filipinos remaining pro-American,” he said.

Subic Bay, once known as Naval Base Subic Bay, was home to thousands of U.S. sailors and their families before the Navy left in 1992. It’s still a regular port call for U.S. warships and Marines who practice beach landings nearby in Zambales province.

Subic’s importance has grown in recent years amid Chinese efforts to build military facilities on artificial islands and claim sovereignty over territory to the west in the South China Sea.

Clark, home to thousands of American airmen and their families before the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo badly damaged the facility, is still a hub for U.S. Air Force and Navy planes operating in the Philippines.

The Chinese commercial moves send a message to Duterte critics that China can do what it likes in the Philippines, Abinales said.

“There will be protests, but unless the business sector puts its foot down (which I doubt it will), Duterte will continue with this sell-out to China,” he said.

Source: stripes.com

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THE North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) were declared safe for motorists despite several pavement cracks observed in the bridge approaches along SCTEX, after the 6.1-magnitude earthquake that affected Pampanga and other parts of Central Luzon on April 22.

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NLEX Corp. and its engineering consultant AMH Philippines, said inspection showed no major structural damage in NLEX-SCTEX bridges and slopes, but cracks and deformations on pavements and bridge expansion joints that need immediate repairs.

It was also noted that the bridges performed well and the cracks and deformations were evidently within anticipated range of the design assumptions.

“To ensure the comfort of our motorists, damaged pavements will be replaced and distorted posts as well as bridge expansion joints will be repaired,” said NLEX Corp. President and General Manager Luigi Bautista.

Four bridges in SCTEX Porac — Pasig-Potrero, Babo Pangulo, Planas, and Porac — and two bridges in SCTEX Floridablanca — Caulaman and Gumain — bore pavement cracks, while steel plates and expansion joints became uneven. Some median concrete toppings in the said areas were also broken.

Meanwhile, a few light and sign posts along the Candaba Viaduct and Dau and Sta. Ines interchanges along NLEX had noticeably leaned.
But Bautista said the structures, including the elevated ones, were designed and built in such a way that they do not collapse during an earthquake.

He added the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10, the elevated expressway from Karuhatan, Valenzuela City to Caloocan Interchange in C3 (Metro Manila) was earthquake-resistant and could withstand high magnitude quakes.

“Rest assured that our roads adhere to world-class standards as we use top grade materials and undertake regular road condition surveys,” he said.

Source: manilatimes.net

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT: The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) warned that truck trading companies found violating rules, policies and the terms and conditions of their lease contract with the Subic agency would be shut down.

In a meeting with truck traders at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center here recently, SBMA Chairman and administrator Wilma Eisma said the agency found at least 11 violations and issues committed by several truck trading firms at the Freeport.

These include problems on working visa and royalty, as well as violations of policies on working permit, importation, use of marshalling yard, subleasing, occupancy and use of leased property, parking and environment.

The SBMA said 88 vehicle trading companies were operating in Subic, the only free port wherein the importation of used vehicles and heavy equipment from abroad is allowed by law.

During the meeting, Eisma specifically inveighed against the practice by some truck traders to secure only one work permit for multiple employees, the sponsorship of foreign workers to secure work visa for a fee, and the use of one company’s importation privileges by another firm also for a fee.

“It has been brought to my attention by the Bureau of Immigration that some of your employees are out here employed without working visas. If your work visa is only for one company, you cannot work for another company here in Subic,” Eisma told the traders and their staff.

She said they had submitted the names of erring companies to the Bureau of Immigration.

Eisma also stressed that the locators’ importation privileges were provided for under their individual Certificate of Registration and Tax Exemption, and is not transferable.

She told business locators that the SBMA had the power to pre-terminate contracts, including those that govern industrial parks inside the Subic Bay Freeport, upon any violation of the terms and conditions of its lease agreement with the SBMA without a court action.

The SBMA chief also noted that the huge time lapse in the issuance of the admission permit against the actual pullout of equipment and trucks is another violation.

Eisma said some companies were found to be importing more than the volume allowed for their leased areas, thus leading to the illegal parking of these imports on the side of the roads.

Eisma gave errant truck traders until June 1 to comply with the SBMA requirements before their registration as business locators are revoked or canceled.

Source: manilatimes.net

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Participants and Trainers pose for a class photo during the opening ceremony of the International Seaport Interdiction Training held at the Mansion Garden Resort, Subic, Olongapo City, April 22, 2019.

United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) conducted an International Seaport Interdiction Training (ISIT) for 21 officers from Philippine agencies on seaport interdiction and law enforcement.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) Trainer Gerard Bradley explains to a participant possible areas where contrabands can be concealed on a vessel.

The ISIT provided a combination of classroom and practical exercises. The classroom lectures focused on techniques to detect smuggled contrabands, identify weapons of mass destruction, interview suspicious traveling persons, detect fraudulent travel documents, inspect containers and stay safe in a seaport environment. Practical exercises included visits to the Subic Bay International Terminal Corporation New Container Terminal and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Naval Supplies Depot where CBP trainers demonstrated interdiction techniques and the participants conducted container and vessel inspections.

Participants went to the engine room of the vessel and discussed interdiction and inspection techniques in an engine room.

Participating Philippine agencies included the Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Immigration, Philippine Coast Guard and the Philippine National Police. The CBP ISIT was funded the US State Department-Export Control and Related Border Security Program. This iteration of ISIT was held from April 22 to 26 in Subic, Olongapo City.

Source: ph.usembassy.gov

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT: More companies based here have joined the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority’s (SBMA) “War on Waste” since the start of the Recyclable Collection Event (RCE) project in 2016, SBMA Ecology Center manager Amethya de la Llana said.

“Our business locators now see the benefits of properly disposing of trash. It’s orderly and more efficient, as well as economical,” de la Llana said during the 6th RCE held at the former mini-golf course along Waterfront Road here.

The participating companies brought to the event various recyclable items like used car batteries, cardboard and paper scraps and light bulbs.

“It has been our company’s initiative to properly dispose of our hazardous wastes, being a company that conducts inspection, verification and tests on various products such as gas, oil and other chemicals,” said Marge Lingad, administrative officer of locator SGS Subic Bay Inc.

Lingad said the firm used to outsource treatment of wastes generated by their operation. “But now we found an economical way to dispose of these and at the same time, help raise funds for the environment,” she added.

Recyclable items generated through the SBMA project were sold to recyclers, and proceeds were donated to the ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation, which funds Bantay Kalikasan, an organization that promotes a healthy environment for local communities.

In the recently concluded 6th RCE, the SBMA Ecology Center recognized Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Co.Ltd. for religiously donating recyclable trash since the pilot collection event three years ago, as well as for donating recyclable trash worth P32,160 during the previous RCE.

Other companies recognized for their contributions to the recycling project include Subic Truckboy, SGS (Subic Bay) Inc., Broadband Broadcast Services, Nidec Subic Philippines, Sanyo Denki Philippines Inc., Koryo Subic, Subic Bay International Terminal Corp., Wistron Infocomm Phils., Mateen Tokyo International Inc., and Apollo Subic International Trading Corp.

Among the SBMA departments, meanwhile, the Procurement and Property Management Department was recognized for turning in recyclables worth P297,380 at the 5th RCE in November 2018.

In a short program that kicked off the 6th RCE, dela Llana pointed out that when astronauts go to outer space, they experience the “overview effect” where they feel how fragile the earth is.

“I hope we do not have to go to outer space just to realize how fragile the earth is. With the series of earthquakes and aftershocks, let us help our environment adapt to the changes through environmentally-sound practices,” she added.

De la Llana also said recyclable items like old tires, expired medicines, rubber shoes/slippers and used clothes would be accepted in the next collection event.

The RCE is part of the SBMA’s War on Waste program that also includes an anti-littering drive, the regulated use of plastic straws and plastic bags for wet products, and a ban of single-use plastics.

Source: manilatimes.net

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