Call PPA’s TOP-CRMS ‘a grave threat to reducing transport and logistics costs’
Two of the country’s logistics groups, the Alliance of International Shipping Lines (AISL) and the Alliance of Container Yard Operators of the Philippines (ACYOP), expressed their full support for the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) recently unveiled six-point agenda to achieve food security.
The logistics industry leaders particularly lauded the DTI’s efforts to reduce transport and logistics costs, which they said “an essential step in curbing inflation and ensuring the affordability of essential commodities for the Filipino people.”
During a post-SONA briefing on food security, Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castelo said that in order to reduce transport and logistics cost, the action agenda includes calling for a moratorium on pass through fees, a halt on the imposition of additional port fees and other charges, zero tolerance of gray costs, and legislative measures to regulate international shipping charges.
“We fully support and we extend our gratitude to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for its invaluable recommendations. It is imperative that we put an end to the burden of unnecessary port fees, which only exacerbate inflation and adversely impact the prices of essential commodities,” said Patrick Ronas, President of AISL.
Ronas added that a legislation seeking to regulate shipping fees are now in Congress. The measure, he said, is supported by the shipping industry.
Roger Lalu, chairman of ACYOP, stressed the vital role played by logistics in the movement of goods and echoed AISL’s support for the DTI’s agenda. Lalu emphasized “that efficient logistics are crucial in reducing costs and ensuring the smooth flow of essential goods throughout the country.”
“This six-point agenda aligns with the national goal of curbing inflation and reducing the costs of essential goods, as laid out by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his second State of the Nation Address” the groups said.
The two groups said that critical to DTI’s agenda is the plea for the permanent scrapping of the Philippine Port Authority’s controversial container registry, monitoring, and storage system known as the Trusted Operator Program-Container Registry and Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS).
Ronas argued that TOP-CRMS imposes additional financial burdens through insurance fees, transaction fees, and trucking fees, inflating importation expenses by up to 50%, equivalent to approximately P35 billion per year.
Furthermore, AISL expressed its unwavering support for the digitization efforts undertaken by the Marcos administration, as mentioned in the President’s 2nd SONA.
The AISL, in collaboration with the Bureau of Customs, had recently signed a Memorandum of Agreement on Data Sharing, which facilitates the implementation of the Automated Container Movement Monitoring System (ACMMS).
This digitalized system is a result of a two-year joint effort between AISL and the Bureau of Customs to effectively enforce Customs Administrative Order No. 8-2019. ACMMS reinforces the ongoing digitalization and modernization program funded by the World Bank.
“We firmly believe that international carriers and the Bureau of Customs must continue to collaborate in resolving mutual concerns. As partners and enablers, we are committed to working hand in hand with the government to sustain the growth of our nation’s economy,” emphasized Ronas.
“The system will monitor the movement of containers, loaded and empty, from discharge up to reexportation at all seaports in the Philippines,” Ronas added.
Under the terms of the MOA, the AISL shall provide the Bureau of Customs with comprehensive online access to its web-based Automated Container Movement Monitoring System (ACMMS) and its associated database. Additionally, AISL will shoulder all costs related to the development, maintenance, and continuous operation of the ACMMS system.
Ronas emphasized that the ACMMS renders the PPA’s TOP-CRMS redundant, as it replicates existing digital container tracking and booking applications provided by international shipping lines and terminal/off-dock CY operators.
“It is merely an unnecessary additional layer of bureaucracy that brings no tangible benefits to the public and will squander valuable public funds under the guise of ‘digitalization,’ while the Bureau of Customs already has an ongoing World Bank-supported digitalization and modernization strategy in place to combat smuggling,” Ronas said.
Recently, 24 prominent business groups, including esteemed foreign chambers in the country, have joined forces to appeal to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to abolish the Philippine Port Authority’s (PPA) contentious container registry, monitoring, and storage program.
Foreign business groups such as the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (AMCHAM), European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP), Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Inc. (JCCIPI), Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Inc. (CANCHAM), and the Korean Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (KCCP) have united with the local business community in this cause.
Aside from reducing transport and logistics cost, included in the DTI’s six-point agenda are to revolutionize the Philippine food distribution system, increase investments in logistics infrastructure and storage, address other supply chain gaps, heighten enforcement measures against hoarding, smuggling overstaying of food imports, and monitoring of warehouses or cold storage facilities, and use ICT to improve logistics performance.
