ROXAS: MARINA SHOULD HAVE REQUIRED SULPICIO TO GET P&I INSURANCE

Senator Mar Roxas said the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) could have and should have required Sulpicio Lines to get more comprehensive insurance coverage, because it is empowered to do so as the industry's regulator.

He cited Republic Act No. 9295, the Domestic Shipping Development Act of 2004, which requires domestic ship operators to have adequate insurance coverage for passengers and cargo. The law also gives MARINA the power to require ship operators to obtain other compulsory insurance coverage, such as third-party protective and indemnity (P & I) insurance.

"MARINA should have exercised prudence and foresight and required Sulpicio and all other ship operators to get P & I and other comprehensive insurance coverage. Because Sulpicio reportedly has no P & I coverage, the government will now have to shoulder the cost for repairing the accident's damage to the environment and to the livelihoods of people," he said.

"Halos lahat ng nasa industriya, mayroon na pala nitong P & I insurance. Dapat may magandag sagot ang MARINA sa kung bakit hindi nito ginamit ang kapangyarihan nito para protektahan ang mga pasahero, ang mga mamamayan at ang kalikasan," he stressed.

Section 15 of RA 9295 states that "the MARINA shall have the power to require every ship operator to obtain such other compulsory insurance coverage necessary to adequately cover claims for damages," he said.

P & I is a form of third-party liability insurance, which covers the cost of cleaning up possible damage to the environment and to other assets that may result from a shipping mishap. P & I is similar to the Compulsory Third-Party Liability (CTPL) Insurance required of motor vehicle owners.

After exacting accountability from Sulpicio, MARINA and other involved government agencies and private entities involved in this mishap, the Liberal Party President said that the next step should be to assess the shipping industry and government's regulations vis-�-vis international standards.

"We should look into the extent of insurance coverage and other safeguard measures that ship operators in other countries use. We should also look at what other governments require from ship operators before these could fare their territorial waters," he said.