SC kicks out oil depot from Pandacan
December 1, 2014 at 10:22
THE SUPREME COURT (SC) yesterday ordered three major oil firms in the country to remove their facilities from Manila’s Pandacan district by July next year, saying a 2009 ordinance that allowed them to stay was illegal.
The court, sitting en banc, voted 10-2 against Manila City Ordinance No. 8187, enacted under the administration of former mayor Alfredo S. Lim, saying it was “unconstitutional and invalid with respect to the continuing stay of the Pandacan oil terminals.”
That 2009 ordinance repealed a November 2001 precedent, Ordinance No. 8027 enacted during the administration of former mayor Jose L. Atienza, Jr., that reclassified parts of Pandacan and Sta. Ana districts as commercial from industrial in nature on the grounds of safety.
In its ruling yesterday, the high court sided with petitioners — Social Justice Society (SJS) officers Samson S. Alcantara and Vladimir Alarique T. Cabigao — who argued that Ordinance No. 8187 violated the constitutional rights “to health and… to a healthful and balanced environment.”
The high court said it “adopted its reasoning in the earlier case… sustaining Ordinance No. 8027… that the continued stay of the oil depot placed the residents of Manila in danger of being a terrorist target.” The earlier case stemmed from an SJS challenge to a memorandum of understanding between the city and the Energy department to instead just allow “the scaling down of the Pandacan terminals [as] the most viable and practicable option.”
In its decision on that earlier case, promulgated March 7, 2007, the high court noted that Ordinance No. 8027 was enacted after the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. “The objective of the ordinance is to protect the residents from the catastrophic devastation that will surely occur in case of a terrorist attack on the Pandacan terminals. No reason exists why such a protective measure should be delayed,” the court had ruled at that time.
In its decision yesterday, the high court said “[t]he incumbent mayor of the City of Manila (Joseph Ejercito Estrada) is hereby ordered to cease and desist from enforcing Ordinance No. 8187.”
“In coordination with appropriate government agencies and the parties hereto involved, he is further ordered to oversee the relocation and transfer of the oil terminals out of the Pandacan area.”
The Supreme Court also ordered oil majors Chevron Philippines, Inc; Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.; and Petron Corp. to submit to Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 39 updated comprehensive relocation plans and schedules within 45 days. Relocation, in turn, should be completed not later than six months from the date such documents are submitted.
The court’s latest ruling can still be appealed, Supreme Court Spokesman Theodore O. Te told reporters.
Energy department data show the depot services around half of the country’s fuel demand.
Sought for comment, Petron Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ramon S. Ang replied in a text message: “We will comply.” Last May, Mr. Ang said Petron is scheduled to completely vacate the Pandacan oil depot by end-2015. He said the company has been relocating to areas like Limay in Bataan, Rosario in Cavite and Navotas City.
In a statement, Shell said: “We have yet to receive the court order to enable us to comment further”, adding: “Rest assured that Shell will observe the rule of law and good governance.”
Saying it “cannot fully comment on the matter” since it has yet to receive a copy of the order, Chevron said it “has ceased using the Pandacan facility since June 2014.”
“Our last barge delivery into Pandacan was May of 2014,” Chevron said in a statement sent via text.
Chevron said “what remains now is just its governance role in Pandacan Depot Services Inc.”, a joint venture among Chevron, Shell and Petron that operates the Pandacan facility. – R. D. Madrid and Claire-Ann Marie C. Feliciano
Source: https://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=TopStory&title=sc-kicks-out-oil-depot-from-pandacan&id=98544
