Sanction on Sulpicio; Pacquiao’s comment
DID YOU KNOW...
... MARINA DECISION ON MV PRINCESS OF THE STARS SINKING, in which 819 people were killed or declared missing and presumed dead --- has finally been released and you know the punishment?
After seven years, the Maritime Industry Authority finally concluded that Sulpicio Lines should be (a) stripped of its authority to carry passengers in its vessels and (b) fined P800 (!) for carrying without a “special permit” Endosulfan, a kind of corrosive substance, a marine pollutant and sensitive cargo.
It’s merely administrative but look at the length of time for Marina to terminate it. Years before the decision, Sulpicio, anticipating the ruling, changed its name to Span Asia Center and became a cargo carrier.
And there were at least 819 lives lost, which would make the Mamasapano massacre, with 44 lives, pale in comparison on death toll. And the fine of P800 is a joke. Not Marina’s fault. It’s what the law imposes.
... MANNY PACQUIAO, the boxing champion and congressman, showed up last Monday in the House and weighed in with his thoughts about the Mamasapano massacre.
After his several absences from Congress (he showed up three times in 2014 but was credited for even days of attendance, which earned him the title of No. 1 absentee in the House), he finally surfaced and managed to say a few words on the hottest topic of the season. Like a beauty contestant in the recent Miss Universe pageant, whose winners he helped pick, Pacquiao came out with a line about unity and peace following the Jan. 25 firefight in Maguindanao.
That’s almost a month late but it came. His thought about the Bangsamoro bill? “Let’s study it.” Or what amounts to a no-comment comment. But who can throw a punch at the reaction of a congressman who’s also a one-star general in the Armed Forces and a champion boxer?