Allaying misunderstood notions
In light of the prevailing calm surrounding the scale-down and relocation of the Pandacan depot, Station Commander Osit believes that the petitioners of Ordinance No. 8027 may have had sufficient cause to push for the legislation. “May bearing kasi pag may mangyari hindi natin macalculate ang magiging damage at magiging effect. (It has bearing because if something happened, we would not be able to calculate the resulting damage and the possible effect),” noted Osit.
Even Kagawad Pacing echoes a similar statement albeit his reservations that the local community will support a terrorist action, “Iba na ang takbo ng panahon ngayon. Pero ang Pandacan wala pa namang nangyayari dito sa amin. E yung mga depot na yan nakatutulong pa sa tao yan. Wala silang hangad na pasabugin yan dahil madaming tao dito sa Pandacan ang nakikinabang yan. (The times are different now. But here in Pandacan, nothing bad has happened to us. Those depots help the residents. They don’t have any intention of bombing the facility because a lot of people in Pandacan benefit from them.”
The Shell Executive believes that, “After 9-11, they (the residents) were fed with the information that an explosion in the oil depot … will cause a lot of death, which could include Malacanang … after we were able to show at the City Hall and the courts that there are studies made that it will not happen … that with everything on fire, it will not make a very, very big impact on the community.” The studies were made by EQE International, a third-party group that was commissioned by the three oil companies to conduct a security and safety assessment of the whole facility.
The results of the assessment were presented to the petitioners at the City council who were also invited to visit the facility. But even the Executive thinks that an inspection is enough. “Then again, when you see an oil depot, it’s a bunch of tanks and pipes … the impression of whether its safe or secure is not secure is not really strong … they will see that we have a very strong personal protective safety policy but that is not an anti-terrorist sort of thing … that’s when the security experts come in,” he stressed.
Meanwhile, the 7-year relocation will continue to take place. “Pilipinas Shell has addressed safety and security by scaling-down the Pandacan oil depot, as agreed with the Manila Mayor and the Energy Secretary,” said Mich Cruz. “Several storage tanks have been removed or decommissioned as fuel tanks i.e. one tank converted to water storage tank, during scale-down, including the LPG spheres and others previously located near the perimeter walls and residential areas. As a result, what was once part of the site, has been converted into a community park (also called a linear park), which serves as a green buffer zone between the site and the community.”
“We believe that the Pandacan oil depot scale-down project is the most viable approach to balance the safety and security concerns of the City Council of Manila with the need for a safe and secure supply of petroleum products for Metro Manila and parts of Luzon,” concluded Cruz.
Conclusion
There are a number of reasons why Pandacan will continue to become an interesting case study for experts in the field of businesses, politics, safety & security; and a greater number of compelling reasons why it will continue to have advocates and detractors.
Ultimately, speculations abound as to why the Ordinances were originally pursued. Some believe that the motives lean towards certain political agendas.
“E nagbabago ang generation natin … yung nagrereklamo dyan e di naman taga rito … siguro naman matutuwa sya dahil dun malilipat malapit sa kanila … ung nakukuha na taxes dito makukuha din dun … nagkakaroon ng share ang barangay. (Our generation is changing … the complainants are not from here … they will probably be happy that the (depot) will be transferred near them … they will get the taxes … their barangays will earn their share (of taxes),” aired Kagawad Pacing.
For others, the belief stems from an uninformed audience.
“The public has very little to do with this,” according to the Shell Executive. “It’s the city hall or the regulators that have a perception about where the oil depot should be located. Everywhere in the world, where an oil depot is located in a populated area, it becomes a target for the residents to question why it is there … they will always question the reason because of a fear … that there might be a conflagration … The councilors who made the ordinance are not from the immediate area. They are not technically qualified to make an assessment. They are very qualified, however, to feel the pulse of the people and then to make it into a regulation,” he continued.
In light of the prevailing calm surrounding the scale-down and relocation of the Pandacan depot, Station Commander Osit believes that the petitioners of Ordinance No. 8027 may have had sufficient cause to push for the legislation. “May bearing kasi pag may mangyari hindi natin macalculate ang magiging damage at magiging effect. (It has bearing because if something happened, we would not be able to calculate the resulting damage and the possible effect),” noted Osit.
Even Kagawad Pacing echoes a similar statement albeit his reservations that the local community will support a terrorist action, “Iba na ang takbo ng panahon ngayon. Pero ang Pandacan wala pa namang nangyayari dito sa amin. E yung mga depot na yan nakatutulong pa sa tao yan. Wala silang hangad na pasabugin yan dahil madaming tao dito sa Pandacan ang nakikinabang yan. (The times are different now. But here in Pandacan, nothing bad has happened to us. Those depots help the residents. They don’t have any intention of bombing the facility because a lot of people in Pandacan benefit from them.”
The Shell Executive believes that, “After 9-11, they (the residents) were fed with the information that an explosion in the oil depot … will cause a lot of death, which could include Malacanang … after we were able to show at the City Hall and the courts that there are studies made that it will not happen … that with everything on fire, it will not make a very, very big impact on the community.” The studies were made by EQE International, a third-party group that was commissioned by the three oil companies to conduct a security and safety assessment of the whole facility.
The results of the assessment were presented to the petitioners at the City council who were also invited to visit the facility. But even the Executive thinks that an inspection is enough. “Then again, when you see an oil depot, it’s a bunch of tanks and pipes … the impression of whether its safe or secure is not secure is not really strong … they will see that we have a very strong personal protective safety policy but that is not an anti-terrorist sort of thing … that’s when the security experts come in,” he stressed.
Meanwhile, the 7-year relocation will continue to take place. “Pilipinas Shell has addressed safety and security by scaling-down the Pandacan oil depot, as agreed with the Manila Mayor and the Energy Secretary,” said Mich Cruz. “Several storage tanks have been removed or decommissioned as fuel tanks i.e. one tank converted to water storage tank, during scale-down, including the LPG spheres and others previously located near the perimeter walls and residential areas. As a result, what was once part of the site, has been converted into a community park (also called a linear park), which serves as a green buffer zone between the site and the community.”
“We believe that the Pandacan oil depot scale-down project is the most viable approach to balance the safety and security concerns of the City Council of Manila with the need for a safe and secure supply of petroleum products for Metro Manila and parts of Luzon,” concluded Cruz.
Conclusion
There are a number of reasons why Pandacan will continue to become an interesting case study for experts in the field of businesses, politics, safety & security; and a greater number of compelling reasons why it will continue to have advocates and detractors.
Ultimately, speculations abound as to why the Ordinances were originally pursued. Some believe that the motives lean towards certain political agendas.
“E nagbabago ang generation natin … yung nagrereklamo dyan e di naman taga rito … siguro naman matutuwa sya dahil dun malilipat malapit sa kanila … ung nakukuha na taxes dito makukuha din dun … nagkakaroon ng share ang barangay. (Our generation is changing … the complainants are not from here … they will probably be happy that the (depot) will be transferred near them … they will get the taxes … their barangays will earn their share (of taxes),” aired Kagawad Pacing.
For others, the belief stems from an uninformed audience.
“The public has very little to do with this,” according to the Shell Executive. “It’s the city hall or the regulators that have a perception about where the oil depot should be located. Everywhere in the world, where an oil depot is located in a populated area, it becomes a target for the residents to question why it is there … they will always question the reason because of a fear … that there might be a conflagration … The councilors who made the ordinance are not from the immediate area. They are not technically qualified to make an assessment. They are very qualified, however, to feel the pulse of the people and then to make it into a regulation,” he continued.
Another View of the Depot in the Pandacan DistrictShell Philippines, according to the Executive, is ready for the decision of the Courts. “We are a company that follows the law. So whatever comes out of the deliberation, if they say that we have to move, then we will move … We will follow the law. Oil companies will always follow the law. Whatever the local and national government desire, we will follow. It may cost money but we will follow the law,” reiterated the top Executive.
The Executive believes that Ordinance No. 8027 was prematurely enforced by the Supreme Court based on procedures and not on the content hence their intervention. “Yes, as per procedural that may be valid but whether the content is really correct – that you can say to anybody especially an oil company (to go away) – that is the question. Are you willing to put chaos in the country to execute what is not feasible? That’s why they are figuring out how to make a ruling that will respect the rights of everybody and still look at national interests.”
In a world engulfed by a fear of terrorist attacks, the Pandacan Oil Depot will continually be a disputed territory. What remains to be seen is if the measures undertaken to protect the facility today will alleviate the lives of those who will live with it tomorrow.
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