THE Department of Interior and Local Government must act on the complaint of enraged villagers in Naga City, Cebu with dispatch and find out the liability of the Bureau of Fire Protection as well as the city government over the continued operation of a Malaysian-owned Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) despite the lack of permits to operate.
Lawyer Julius Entise said they’re hopeful that DILG Secretary Mar Roxas will heed their call to get to the bottom of the matter citing the health hazard it poses to them and the environment. The LPG terminal owned by the Petronas Energy Philippines located in Brgy. Langtad, has reportedly been operating illegally as it allegedly enjoys protection from the local government and the BFP in the region. Petronas plant has been operating without the BFP’s Fire Safety Inspection Certificate (FSIC), which is requirement before a local government unit could issue a business permit.
“We are asking why the city government and the BFP in Central Visayas are turning a blind eye on the issue about pro-Malaysian and anti-Filipino,” Atty. Entise said.
The Malaysian firm is illegally operating the huge LPG terminal with a capacity of over 2.2 million liters and violating provisions of the Comprehensive Fire Code of the Philippines and the Local Government Code.
BFP–7 had admitted during an inquiry on the LPG plant by the provincial board on March 3, 2014 that it didn’t renew the FSIC of the Petronas facility since January 1 and it’s a mystery why it’s operation is tolerated.
The villagers have also written Naga Mayor Val Chiong three times to appeal for his help on the issue but Chiong had allegedly not acted on it for unexplained reason. The BFP-7 also ignored the residents’ pleas on the issue, insisting that it didn’t have jurisdiction over the matter because a case has been filed by another firm, Pryce Gases, Inc., against the Petronas plant that’s now on appeal at the BFP Central Office.
“This is unacceptable. For why would the BFP-7 conveniently denied the pleas of poor residents when the issues raised are distinct – lack of FSIC and business permit. Would they wait for the disaster waiting to happen consummate before acting?” he asks.
The complaining residents, who live near the plant, likewise revealed that they’ve been receiving death threats and other arm-twisting tactics by men who’re allegedly working for the local government and the multi-national plant. “We appeal to the national leadership of the BFP to correct this illegal act that is putting the lives of thousands and the environment in clear and present danger,” Atty. Entise ends.
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