MANILA — While much attention was given on the PHP18-billion Frigate Acquisition Project (FAP) of the Philippine Navy, Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto on Tuesday urged government to also give equal consideration to the country’s lack of floating civilian assets that can be used in disaster response, environmental protection and transportation among others.
Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto made the call after national attention has been riveted to the warship procurement program for the past month, stressing that the deficit in ships is not only in the Navy.
The warship deal is one of the key pieces of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization program, as it seeks to provide the country with the capability to deal with air, surface and sub-surface threats.
“If we were able to find the means to buy our Navy more ships, then we should also be that resourceful in meeting the needs of other agencies for more floating assets,” the lawmaker said.
“For a fraction of the PHP18-billion price tag of two Navy frigates, the country can buy locally-made Pasig River ferry boats, floating hospitals, environmental patrol boats, and other ships needed by a disaster-prone archipelago where half of the towns lie along the coast,” Recto said.
Aside from floating hospitals, among the floating civilian assets being envisioned by the solon that the government should provide are all-purpose mercy ships which can be used as floating headquarters when land structures are compromised due to disasters.
“We are an archipelago. And when there’s a typhoon and the roads are destroyed, the only way to reach the victims is by sea,” he said.
Recto also pointed out that with the Philippines being recognized as the fourth largest shipbuilder in the world, local shipbuilders can be tapped to build the “country’s humanitarian fleet.”
“In acquiring these ships, the government can ‘buy Filipino’ by tapping the vibrant shipbuilding industry in Cebu, Navotas and Subic,” he said.
Just last month, President Rodrigo Duterte led the launch of a 400-meter long megaship which can carry 20,950 units of 40-foot container vans in Subic.
There are also the two Navotas-made research ships commissioned by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources – the Lapu-Lapu and Francisco Dagohoy – which have been on research and enforcement patrol since their launch two years ago.
“PHP250 million lang ang halaga ng bawat isa. Katumbas lang ng down payment natin doon sa mga Dalian trains ng MRT na hindi naman nagagamit (Each one costs only PHP250 million. This is equivalent to the down payment for the Dalian trains of the MRT which are not being used),” Recto noted.
He likewise said that local shipyards could also build ships for coastal or river patrol to keep our rivers and seas clean, with needed weaponries to be sourced from abroad if they are not yet available here.
Recto said government should also reach out to local shipbuilders “in optimizing the unused resource that is the Pasig River in solving Manila’s traffic.”
He said the cost of reviving Pasig River as a people mover is less compared to the expensive land-based solutions like trains and elevated expressways.
“This nautical highway is wider than the widest road. It is toll-free, ready to use, and doesn’t have right-of-way issues. Unlike roads, its rehabilitation won’t cause traffic jams. The missing link are the boats, and that can be supplied by domestic shipbuilders,” Recto said. (Jose Cielito Reganit/PNA)
