Hataman wants House probe on Basilan ferry fire
DEPUTY Minority Leader and Basilan Representative Mujiv Hataman is set to file a resolution seeking to investigate, in aid of legislation, the circumstances surrounding the ferry fire that struck the M/V Lady Mary Joy 3 on March 29 off the waters of Basilan that claimed the lives of 31 passengers and injured several others.
Hataman said that he intends to file the resolution once work resumes in the House of Representatives after the Lenten season break. He said he is also seeking a review of related maritime laws, common carrier statutes, and other operational rules and regulations applicable to sea vessels carrying passengers and cargo in the hope of crafting legislation to strengthen laws and regulations protecting passengers.
“Nais nating malaman kung ano ba ang pinagmulan ng trahedyang ito. Saan nagsimula ang sunog? Sino o ano ang responsable? Bakit hindi naagapan agad? Bakit kulang sa response ang mga kawani ng barko? Sea-worthy ba ang ferry? At bakit umabot sa lagpas tatlumpo ang namatay?” asked Hataman, former governor of the now-defunct Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
“Higit sa lahat, nais nating malaman kung paano ito maiiwasan sa susunod. Are the laws and regulations concerning seas vessels ferrying passengers not enough to protect our passengers? Or does the problem emanate from their implementation?” he added.
M/V Lady Mary Joy 3, a vessel operated by Aleson Shipping Lines, Inc., was en route to Jolo, Sulu, from Zamboanga City when it caught fire off the shores of Baluk-Baluk Island in Hadji Muhtamad, Basilan. Search and rescue operations were immediately launched jointly by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Philippine Navy (PN), and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), along with local government personnel.
“Hanggang ngayon, marami pang pasahero ang patuloy na hinahanap ng Coast Guard. Many are still unaccounted for. We owe it to their families that these missing passengers are found. At marapat lamang na gumawa tayo ng hakbang para hindi ito maulit,” Hataman said.
He also noted complaints about the alleged lack of appropriate and sufficient response from the shipping firm while the incident was happening, especially in assisting the victims and their families.
There is also a discrepancy between the official manifest of passengers of the M/V Lady Mary Joy 3, as released by Aleson Shipping Lines Inc., and the report released by the PCG.
“We hope to ascertain and clarify all of these once a congressional inquiry is undertaken. Ang mahalaga, malaman natin ang puno’t dulo ng trahedya at saan nagkamali o nagkulang. If these can be addressed by legislation, we will do so in Congress. If this is a problem in implementation, we should address it,” Hataman declared.
“Buhay ng tao ang nakasalalay sa ating mga susunod na hakbang. We should make the inquiry as comprehensive as possible to plug all the holes in legislation and in implementation. Para din mabigyan ng hustisya ang mga namatay sa trahedyang ito,” he said.
A similar inquiry is also being asked through a resolution filed by two members of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority Parliament – MP Amir Mawallil and Deputy Speaker MP Laisa Masuhud Alamia.
Mawallil and Alamia, both principal authors of Bangsamoro Transition Authority Proposed Resolution No. 209, also want to determine the adequacy of the safety measures and protocols in place for sea travel within the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
