Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3524

House Bill No.

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE MANUEL JOSE M. DALIPE

AN ACT
CREATING THE ZAMBOANGA CITY PORTS AUTHORITY,
DEFINING ITS POWERS AND FUNCTIONS, PROVIDING
APPROPRIATIONS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill proposes the creation of Zamboanga City Ports Authority in Zamboanga City
in order to achieve an efficient, safe and economical and coordinated system of movement of
goods and persons in the entire Zamboanga Peninsula and other parts of the country particularly
coming from Cebu, Davao and Metro Manila.

It is imperative to establish the Zamboanga City Ports Authority because of Zamboanga
City’s strategic location and being the commercial and industrial center of the Western
Mindanao. The creation of this Authority will optimize efficiency and streamline port
operations that will pave way for more development and progress for the benefit of our
constituents.

Currently, the Port of Zamboanga is the center for sardine exports to the United States,
Europe, Middle East and the Far East. There are twenty-five (25) shipping lines that operate
via the port, serviced by four (4) shipyards operating within the port and Zamboanga City. The
Seaport of Zamboanga has nineteen (19) docks, twelve (12) of which are privately owned. The
largest dock has capacity for up to twenty (20) vessels, and is operated by the Philippine Ports
Authority (PPA). Also, Philippine 2GO Ferries have one ferry a week sailing to & from Manila
to Zamboanga City via Dipolog and Dumaguete. The Port of Zamboanga, an international port
of entry, also features Aleson Shipping Lines, a scheduled passenger ferry going to & from
Sandakan, Malaysia.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

MANUEL JOSE/
2™ District, Zanfjroanga City


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No,_3524

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE MANUEL JOSE M. DALIPE

AN ACT
CREATING THE ZAMBOANGA CITY PORTS AUTHORITY,
DEFINING ITS POWERS AND FUNCTIONS, PROVIDING
APPROPRIATIONS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled.

SECTION 1. Short Title.— This Act shall be known and cited as the “Charter of the
Zamboanga City Ports Authority.”

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is the declared policy of the State to promote
the establishment and growth of autonomous provincial port bodies to produce an efficient,
safe, economical and coordinated system of movement of goods and persons through the port,
consistent with the constitutional mandate to give all provinces of the country optimum
opportunity to develop.

SECTION 3. Creation of the Port Authority. —- There is hereby created public-
benefit corporation to be known as the Zamboanga City Ports Authority, hereinafter referred
to as the Authority. This Authority shall be under the supervision of the Department of
Transportation for purposes of policy coordination.

SECTION 4. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, unless the context

indicates otherwise, the terms used herein shall mean as follows:


(a) “Port Facility” shall include wharves, piers, slips, docks, bulkheads, basins,
warehouses, cold storage, loading and unloading equipment, and passenger terminals
and accessories;

(b) “Transportation facility” includes passenger and cargo boats, ferry boats,
tugs, barges, scows, harbor craft of any kind and any other kind of facility now in use
or hereafter designated for use of the transportation or carriage of persons of goods;

(c) “Navigable waters” means all navigable portions of the seas, estuaries and
inland waterways;

(d) “Wharf” means a continuous structure built parallel to or along the margin
of the sea or alongside riverbanks, canals or other waterways where vessels may lie
alongside to receive and discharge cargo or passenger, or lie at rest;

(c) “Pier” includes any stage, stair, landing stage, jetty, floating barge or
pontoon, and any bridge or other works connected therewith;

(f) “Dock” includes locks, cuts, entrances, graving docks, inclined planes,
slipways, quays and other works relative thereto;

(g) “Bulkhead” means any structure serving to divide land and water areas;

(h) “Basin” means any naturally or artificially enclosed or nearly enclosed body
of water in free communication with the sea;

(i) “Warehouse” means any building for storage or shed for cargo;

(j) “Lighter” means any large flat-bottomed boat or barge used in transporting
goods, or in loading or unloading of vessels not lying alongside piers or wharves;

(k) “Anchorage” means any place with sufficient depth of water where vessels
anchor or may ride at anchor within the harbor;

(1) “Goods” includes wares and merchandise of every description;

(m) “Rates” includes tolls, fees, dues and rent imposed by the Authority;


(n) “Vehicle” includes any carriage traveling on its own wheels or runners and
used or intended to be used for the conveyance or carrying of persons, animals or goods;
and

(0) “Vessels” includes any ship, boat or any waterbone craft used in the
conveyance or carrying of person's animals or goods.

SECTION 5. Purposes and Objectives. — The Authority shall have the following

purposes and objectives:

(a) To integrate and coordinate the planning, development, construction and operations
of ports and port facilities within its territorial jurisdiction, consistent with the needs and

requirements of the province;

(b) To enhance the flow of intemational and domestic commerce passing through or

utilizing the provincial ports; and

(©) To promote provincial development by providing support services to sustain the

growth of export and other priority industries in the province.

SECTION 6. Territorial Jurisdiction. — The territorial jurisdiction of the Authority
shall include all seas, lakes, rivers and all other navigable inland waterways within the
Zamboanga Peninsula, including waterways within the said province and all other cities

existing and which may hereafter be created therein.
SECTION 7. Powers. - The Authority shall have the power and responsibility to:

(a) Have perpetual succession under its corporate name until
otherwise provided by law;
(b) Prescribe its bylaws and such rules and regulations as may be

found necessary to promote or enhance the business of the Authority;


(c) Adopt and use a seal;

(d) Sue and sued in any court;

(©) Enter into contracts, transactions, and undertakings of whatever
nature, which are necessary or incidental to its functions and objectives,
with any natural or juridical persons or with any government institutions,
domestic or foreign;

(f) Acquire, own, hire, use, operate and dispose of personal
property and to acquire , own, use, lease, operate and dispose of real
property and interests thereon and to make improvements on such real
property, including the reclamation, for port purposes, of foreshore and
submerged lands within its territorial jurisdiction; which reclaimed land
shall ipso facto be deemed transferred in ownership to the Authority;
and to enter into contracts with any public or private entity for such
reclamation under such terms and conditions as it may deem to be for
the public interest;

(g) Purchase, hold, alienate, mortgage, pledge or otherwise dispose
of the shares of the capital stock of, or any bond, security or other
evidences or indebtedness created by any other corporation or co-
partnership of this or any other country, and while the owner of said
stock, to exercise all the rights of ownership, including the right to vote
thereon;

(h) Exercise the right of eminent domain;

(i) Exercise all other power not contrary to law which may be
necessary or incidental to the effectuation of is authorized purposes or

to the exercise of any of the foregoing powers, except the power to


levy taxes assessments and, in general, to exercise in connection with
property within its control all powers which may be exercised by a
natural or juridical person over its property and affairs;

(j) Levy dues and impose rates and charges for the use of the
premises, works, appliances, facilities or for services provided by or
belonging to the Authority, or any other organization concemed with
port operations;

(k) Make expenditures in foreign countries to pay commissions and
hire or contract experts and consultants, both foreign and local;

(1) Make expenditures for promotion of the business affairs of the
Authority; and

(m)Exercise all the power of a corporation under the Corporation

Law insofar as they are not inconsistent with provisions of this Act.

SECTION 8. Governing Body. ~ The powers and functions of the Authority shall be
vested in and exercised by a Zamboanga City Port Commission composed of a Chairman, a
Vice-Chairman and five (5) other Commissioners. The Chairman shall be the Secretary of the
Department of Transportation or his duly designated Undersecretary. The Vice-Chairman shall
be the Zamboanga City Port General Manager, who shall be elected by the Commissioners

from among themselves.

The Commissioners shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines and shall

represent the following sectors:

(a) Ship-owners and shipping operators;
(b) Cargo-handling labor sector; and

(©) Business sector.


SECTION 9. Powers and Functions of the Commission. — The powers and functions

of the Zamboanga City Port Commission shall be as follows:

(a) To manage, administer, operate, maintain, improve and develop, coordinate and
otherwise govern the activities of all the ports within its territorial jurisdiction;

(b) To investigate, prepare, adopt, implement, and execute a
comprehensive and orderly plan for the overall development of all ports
within its territorial jurisdiction, and to update such plans, as may be
warranted from time to time;

(c) To raise revenues for the Authority through fees, tolls, charges, rentals and the like
for the use of any property, equipment or facility owned or controlled by it;

(d) To raise and administer, together with such revenues as may by law accrue to the
Authority, capital outlays by means of loans from any local or foreign financial
institution to finance its projects;

(e) To determine by survey and establish by engineering design the exact location,
system and character of any and all port facilities which it may own, construct,
establish, effectuate, operate, or control;

() To provide and maintain port facilities including accessory buildings and
installations within its territorial jurisdiction on its own or through the private
sector;

(g) To prescribe and enforce rules and regulations on the use wharves, piers and
anchorages by ships and other watercraft;

(h) To determine the organization of the Authority and create such
functional units therein as it may deem necessary in the proper and efficient

implementation of the functions and purposes of the Authority, including the


appointment of officials and employees, it being understood that the security
of tenure of these workers shall be respected consistent with existing laws;

(i) To define the duties and fix the compensation and benefits of the General Manager,
Deputy General Manager, Port Managers, and other officers of the Authority, in
accordance with the rules and regulations of the Civil Service Commission and the
Department of Budget and Management;

() To approve the annual budget of the Authority and/or such
supplemental budgets thereof as may be submitted by the General Manager
from time to time; and

(k) To perform such other duties as may be necessary and convenient for the attainment

of the objectives of the Authority.

SECTION 10. Term of Office. — The members of the Zamboanga City Port
Commission shall be appointed for a term of three (3) years; Provided, that any person
appointed to fill a vacancy shall hold office only for the unexpired term of the Commissioner

whom he succeeds.

SECTION 11. Quorum, Per Diems and Allowances. — Four (4) members of the

commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

Unless otherwise fixed by the Commission, the Chairman and all the
members shall each receive a per diem of Five thousand pesos (P5,000), exclusive of traveling
expenses, for each day of meeting of the Commission, which shall not exceed four (4) meetings

a month.

SECTION 12. General Manager. ~ The management of the day-to-day business and

operations of the Authority shall be under the direction and control of the General Manager.

He shall have the following powers and duties;


(a) To manage, direct and supervise the operations and internal administration of the
Authority, subject to the control and supervision of the Commission;

(b) To prepare all memoranda pertaining to each and every item in the agenda for the
meetings of the Commission and to submit for the consideration thereof such proposals
or recommendations which he believes to be necessary to carry out effectively and
beneficially the business of the Authority;

(©) To implement the policies and administer the measures approved by the Commission;

(A) To devise the executive organization pattern of the Authority, submit from time to time
to the Commission the corresponding organizational and functional charts, and enforce
the executive elements thereof;

(©) To appoint and employ the services of subordinate officials and employees subject to
the confirmation of the Commission;

(£) To prepare and submit to the commission budget proposals of all kinds; and

(g) To perform such other duties and exercise such other powers as may be directed or

authorized specifically by the Commission.

SECTION 13. Prohibition Against Conflict of Interest. — No
members of the Commission shall be financially interested, direct or

indirectly, in any contract entered into by the Authority or in any special privilege granted by

it. Violation of this prohibition shall constitute a ground for dismissal.

SECTION 14. Application of Civil Service Laws. — All officers and employees of the
Authority shall be subject to the Civil Service Commission and the Department of Budget and
Management rules and regulations, except those whose positions may, upon recommendation
of the Port Commission, be declared by the President of the Philippines as policy

determining, primarily confidential or highly technical in nature.


SECTION 15. Supplies and Services Other Than Personal. - All

purchases or contracts for services, except for personal services, entered into by the Authority

shall be done only after public bidding thereof is held: Provided, That such bidding may be
required when an emergency, as explained and certified to by the General Manager, requires
immediate delivery of the supplies or performance of the services and the unit costs
or prices of such emergency procurement do not exceed the latest costs or prices paid by the
Authority for the same or similar goods or services: Provided, further, That the General
Manager shall report under oath to the Commission the details of any such emergency
procurement within two (2) weeks after its consummation, including a statement of assurance

that the transaction constitutes the best arrangement possible under the

circumstances.

SECTION 16. Capitalization. - The Authority shall have an

authorized capital stock equal to and consisting of:

(a) The value of fixed assets, including port facilities and equipment administered by or
belonging to the Port of Zamboanga and such other properties, movable and
immovable, within the territorial jurisdiction of the Authority as defined in Section 6
hereof, valued on the date of the effectivity of this Act; and

(6) Government contribution in such amount as may be deemed an
appropriate initial balance. Such initial amount, as approved by the President
of the Philippines, shall be more or less equivalent to six (6) months working

capital requirement of the Authority.

SECTION 17. Auditor and Personnel. — The Commission on Audit shall appoint a

representative who shall be the Auditor of the Authority and the necessary personnel to assist


said representative in the performance of his duties. The operating expenses of the auditing

office and the salaries of both officials and employees shall be paid by the Authority.

SECTION 18. Power to Issue Bonds. — The Authority, to incur
indebtedness or to issue bonds to carry out approved capital investment
projects, shall be approved by the affirmative vote of at least four (4) of all
members of the Commission is a special meeting called for the purpose and
approved by the President of the Philippines upon the recommendation of

the Secretary of Finance and the Central Bank of the Philippines.

SECTION 19. Bond Limits. - The bonds that may be issued by the
Authority shall in no case exceed the total amount of One billion pesos
(P1,000,000,000): Provided, that no single issue shall be made if at least

seventy percent (70%) of the immediately preceding issue is not yet sold.

The bonds shall be issued only in such amounts as will be needed at
only one (1) integral operation not exceeding one (1) year duration, taking
into account the state at which said bonds may be absorbed by the buying
public and the fund requirements of the project ready for execution, and
considering further a proper balance between productive and non-productive

projects so that inflation shall be held to a minimum.

SECTION 20. Form, Rate of Interest, etc. of Bonds. - The
Secretary of Finance, in consultation with the Monetary Board, shall
prescribe the form, the rate of interest, the denominations, maturities,
negotiability, convertibility, call and redemptions features, and all other terms
and conditions of issuances, placement, sale, servicing, redemption and

payment of all bonds issued under the provisions of this Act.


The bonds issued by virtue of this Act shall be made payable both as
to principal and interest in Philippine currency and shall be acceptable as
security in any transaction with the Government in which such security is

required.

SECTION21. Transfer of Existing Facilities. and —_Intangible
Assets. - All existing facilities including wharves, piers, ships, docks,
bulkheads, cargo terminals, warehouses, cold storage, loading and unloading
equipment, and passenger terminals and accessories, within the _ territorial
jurisdiction of the Authority; other lands, buildings and other _ properties,
movable or immovable, belonging to or presently administered by the
Philippine Ports Authority; and all assets, powers, rights, interests and privileges relating to

port works or operations, including all equipment, are hereby transferred to the Authority.

SECTION 22. Projects in Progress. — All ongoing projects relating to the
rehabilitation and/or construction of port facilities and supply of equipment shall be

administered and undertaken by the Authority.

SECTION 23. Transfer of Liabilities and Debts. -— Upon the
transfer to and acceptance by the Authority of the existing physical facilities,
intangible assets and completed projects referred to in the preceding
sections, all debts, liabilities. and obligations of the Philippine Ports
Authority in respect of such physical facilities, tangible assets and completed

projects within the ports shall likewise be assumed by the Authority.

SECTION 24, Abolition of the Port Management Office of Zamboanga
as a Port Management Unit of the Philippine Ports Authority. - The

Port Management Offi of Zamboanga is hereby abolished. The General



Manager of the Authority shall ensure the smooth transfer of responsibility
from the abolished entity to the Authority as well as the determination of
personnel to be retained: Provided, That all officials and employees whose
services are terminated shall, if not eligible for retirement, be given
gratuities equivalent to one (1) month salary for every year of continuous

satisfactory service on the basis of the highest salary received in addition to

other benefits accorded to them by existing laws.

SECTION 25. Annual Report. — An annual report of the Authority
shall be submitted to the President of the Philippines within sixty (60) days

after the close of each fiscal year.

The original of said report shall be submitted to the President of the
Philippines and copies thereof to the House of Representatives and the
Senate of the Philippines and the Department of Transportation and
Communications. The report shall include a financial statement —_ duly

certified by the Auditor of the Authority.

SECTION 26. Appropriations. — The amount necessary to carry
out the provisions of this Act shall be included in the General
Appropriations Act of the year following its enactment into law and

thereafter.

SECTION 27. _ Separability Clause. — If any provision of this Act or the application of
such provision to any person or circumstance is declared unconstitutional, the remainder of this
Act or the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected

by such declaration.


SECTION 28. Repealing Clause. -— All acts, Charters, executive
orders, administrative orders, rules and regulations, or parts thereof, in

conflict with this Act hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION 29. Effectivity Clause. -— This Act shall take effect
fifteen (15) days after its publication in at least two (2) national newspapers

of general circulation or in the Official Gazette, whichever comes earlier.

Approved,