The proposal to transfer supervision of the Philippine seafreight forwarding industry from the Philippine Shippers’ Bureau (PSB) to the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) seems to be finally getting off the ground.
At the 22nd annual general meeting of the ASEAN Federation of Forwarders Associations at the Makati Shangri-La last Friday, MARINA officer-in-charge Atty Nicasio Conti announced the proposal has been tabled for MARINA consideration this Wednesday. Conti was keynote speaker at the gathering.
Conti’s announcement was met with unanimous approval among members of the Philippine International Seafreight Forwarders Association (PISFA) and Federation of Forwarders Association in the Philippines in attendance.
PISFA president Irene Manguiat-Tan said the proposal was long overdue and that its approval will put the industry right where it belongs — with MARINA which is an agency under the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). This, she said, would place all freight forwarders — air and sea — under the jurisdiction of DOTC.
Right now seafreight forwarders are under PSB, an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry, while airfreight forwarders are under the Civil Aeronautics Board, a DOTC agency.
The proposal to transfer seafreight forwarding supervision to MARINA has been gathering dust for years as a result of frequent turnover of MARINA officials.
