MANILA, 31 August 2006 — The Department of Justice yesterday ordered the Burreau of Immigration to place in its watch list nine officials of a shipping company whose tanker sank and caused a massive oil spill in the central Philippines.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales said his order covers five Filipino and four Japanese and executives of Sunshine Maritime Development Corp. He said they are subjects of investigation for possible violation of environment laws and other regulations.
Travel of people on the watch list are monitored. In some instances, they could be barred from leaving or entering the country, investigated or turned over to appropriate authorities.
Gonzales also summoned for investigation, starting next week, shipping company president Clemente Cancio, the tanker’s captain, the head of the Philippine coast guard, four of the tanker’s crewmen and the chairman of Petron Corp., the country’s largest oil refiner and owner of the leaking bunker fuel.
The tanker Solar I, carrying about 2 million liters (500,000 gallons) of bunker oil, sank off the island province of Guimaras on Aug. 11 in rough seas, then began spilling oil, affecting a 220-kilometer stretch of coastline that includes pristine marine reserves. It displaced some 26,000 villagers dependent on fishing.
In a hearing yesterday of the panel looking into the ship’s sinking, Cancio said that he advised the tanker’s captain, Norberto Aguro, to stay in port and wait until bad weather improved, but that the captain decided to proceed with the voyage despite noticing problems with the vessel.
“In hindsight, Sir, I would say he made the wrong decision,” Cancio said in reply to a question from Rear Adm. Danilo Abinoja, the head of the board. The crew had to pump out water that had filled the hull, Abinoja said.
“Having that problem, he should have made a better ... decision of ascertaining whether the ship was still seaworthy,” Abinoja said. The Maritime Industry Authority, a state agency, has stopped the owner of the sunken tanker from operating two other vessels hauling bunker fuel pending a “thorough inspection.”
Vicente Suazo, the agency’s administrator, said he also ordered inspections of oil tankers operated by all companies to prevent similar incidents in the future.
In some parts of Guimaras and Iloilo, health officials urged some residents to evacuate after monitoring an increase in air pollution in the homes.
Police Chief Superintendent Geary Barias, head of disaster response officials in the region, said 136 families from two coastal villages had to move in with relatives or to evacuation centers after tests showed high levels of pollution and health risks due to the oil slick. “There will be more evacuations tomorrow,” he added.
Some 96 families were asked to leave Lapaz village of Guimaras yesterday, said village head Veronica Ortiz, joining 24 other families who fled on Tuesday to other parts of island-province.
“I can no longer stand the stench. It’s making me cough,” Emiliano Peñaflor, 81, said as he gathered a few belongings.
Soldiers, who set up checkpoints in La Paz, asked journalists to wear masks before entering the village. “Our tests showed high levels of hydrogen sulfide, benzene and toluene,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque said. “Prolonged exposure to these can create health hazards to residents.” (With input from agencies)
