SBMA retakes control of Grande Island due to lease violations

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has resumed possession of Grande Island after ending its lease agreement with GFTG Holdings Corporation.

SBMA officials said the move followed a decision by the authority’s board to terminate the contract after the company failed to fulfill agreed development commitments.

A pre-termination notice was issued earlier, giving the lessee a fixed period to vacate the property before enforcement measures were carried out.

The takeover was completed earlier this month after SBMA served a formal repossession notice and proceeded with implementation following the holiday period.

GFTG has since filed a request seeking the revival of its lease, which is now undergoing review by a board-level committee.

The island drew heightened public scrutiny last year after the arrest of several Chinese nationals accused of conducting unauthorized surveillance activities.

Investigators said the suspects allegedly used drones and electronic devices to gather images and data related to naval operations in Subic Bay.

Grande Island’s strategic location overlooking key maritime passages has since fueled security discussions, including proposals to place the area under tighter government control. (thechronicle.com)

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SBMA Chairman warns unscrupulous traders to follow protocol or get banned

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan warned port users here engaged in truck trading to follow protocol or get banned from doing business inside the Freeport.

Chairman Tan in a meeting with 100 stakeholders on Thursday said that the agency is clamping down on illegal activities that are proliferating in the Freeport.

One of the most common is underdeclaration of the weight of shipped trucks to reduce the payment of their duties and taxes. Also common is the fraudulent upgrading of the trucks' year model through bribery, aside from the irregular shortening of process time or skirting of port policies by truckers who want their shipments processed earlier than scheduled.

“This is a fair warning to everyone. The President told me to give you a chance, he told me to save the truck industry. The processing of imported trucks should be done as stated by law,” he said.

“Most of the truckers here use bribes to speed up the processing of their papers. We will stop this illegal activity and will abide by the process on the releasing of trucks,” he added.

The SBMA is in the process of procuring a weighing scale that will be used on November 15, providing the agency equipment to determine the actual weight of imported vehicles and improve the deterrence of illegal activities in the port area.

“You have until November 15 to straighten your businesses or we will revoke your permit. This order is coming from the President, and I will coordinate with BOC Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio to ensure that you are all following the protocols,” he said.

The agency chief further admonished that no one should ask for money using his name, that he will give his number to the truckers so that if anyone tries to ask for money, they can contact him.

Tan said that for the past 30 plus years, this has been the norm in the Subic Freeport, adding that things will be different. “Ngayon bago na, kung hindi niyo magawa ng tama yan, I will have to revoke your permit,” he concluded. (MPD-SBMA)

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SBMA repossesses former Duty Free Shop for multiple violations

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has taken over the property of Duty Free Superstore, Inc. (DFSI) on Wednesday as the agency continues to clamp down on companies with contractual defaults.

The DFSI formerly occupies Building 332 and its adjacent lot at Burgos St., Naval Station. With an area of 651 square meters, while the adjacent lot has an area of 463 square meters.

Duty Free Superstore Inc. has a contractual default of non-payment of lease rentals, common use service area (CUSA) fees, and other charges that amounted to P15,932,595.16 as of March 2017.

“We conducted a clearing/ transfer of personal properties from the premises,” SBMA Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan,

The company has a lease agreement with the SBMA dated September 16, 2003, with a 25-year lease term that should have ended on September 15, 2028. The building and the adjacent lot was previously repossessed by the SBMA Legal Department on April 11, 2017.

Duty Free Superstore, Inc. has subsequently filed a Petition for Voluntary Insolvency at the Olongapo City Regional Trial Court, which was dismissed on September 2, 2020.

We want to continue with our thrust to repossess and reutilize idle lands inside the Freeport to promote a more efficient and vibrant business climate here,” Tan added.

During a hearing with Senator JV Ejercito, Tan said that the agency has currently repossessed 10 parcels of unused land, with 20 more lined up for repossession, adding that the agency is conducting audits to ensure business vibrancy at the Freeport. (MPD-SBMA)

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SBMA repossess 3 more properties of erring locators

True to its mandate of utilizing land areas efficiently, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has taken over three more properties inside this premier Freeport on Tuesday.

According to SBMA Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan, the agency took over two buildings from Parabion, Inc. at the Cubi Triboa District within the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, adding that the area has a size of 1,176 square meters.

“The company has committed contractual defaults that prompted the SBMA to take over their properties. One is failure to comply with development commitments, and two for non-payment of lease rentals and Common Use of Service Area (CUSA) fees,” he said.

The company has amassed a debt in CUSA close to 10 million pesos as of July 28 of this year.

“We already sent them a final notice of default with demand to pay on November 22, 2022, then we sent them a notice of pre-termination and repossession on July 28 that was served on August 10. This is pursuant to SBMA Board Resolution No. 23-07-0173 that was approved last July 4,” Tan added.

Tan also pointed out that the agency took over Bldg. 8321 along Zambales Highway, Cubi Triboa District, and Bldg. 8359 along Bataan Road, also in the Cubi Triboa District.

The third property that was taken over by the agency was owned by Ramphos Corporation, a company that manufactures and sells amphibious ultralight aircraft.

The property is a 966-square-meter portion of Bldg. 8045-C at the Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA).

The company has an expired lease agreement with the SBMA since September 11, 2020, prompting the eventual take over by the SBMA last September 5, 2023.

The chairman confirmed that the company has contractual defaults such as non-payment of lease rentals (building spaces), CUSA fees, ACC and SOA fees amounting nearly PhP10 Million as of July 28 of this year.

The SBMA chief urged companies inside the Subic Bay Freeport to pay their dues diligently to ensure their seamless business operations inside this premier Freeport. (MPD-SBMA)

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Erring company in Subic Freeport closed by SBMA

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Jonathan D. Tan led the repossession of a 1,500-square meter land area from an erring company as part of the agency’s thrust to regain areas for reutilization for other investors.

“We are repossessing leased areas of companies that do not comply with the agreement between them and the SBMA, and offer these areas to other investors,” Tan said.

The repossession of property transpired today at the Silver Arrow Import and Export Services, Inc. located at Lot 1, Boton Area, Argonaut Highway. The 1,500-sqm. land area of the company was repossessed due to contractual defaults.

According to Tan, the company failed to comply with its Investment and Development Commitment as provided in Section 7, Article II of the Lease Agreement between the company and the SBMA. Part of the said default is the failure of the company to develop the area with a funding allocation of at least US$1,000,000.

He added that the development commitment on the Leased Property should have a minimum cost of US$500,000 which includes the construction of a warehouse within two years from the issuance of its building permit.

“Aside from the Investment and Development Commitment, the company’s contractual default also includes non-compliance with the Omnibus Policy on Performance Bond, and failure to submit documents for the issuance of a building permit,” he said.

The said building permit is for the construction of a warehouse as stated under the company’s Development Commitment. Tan added that this is so despite the unreasonable length of time that had already lapsed since the execution of the lease agreement last July 28, 2015.

The SBMA had already served two notices before executing the repossession, with the Final Notice of Default with Demand to Pay dated June 19, 2023 that was served on June 26, 2023; and the Notice of Pre-termination and Repossession dated July 28, 2023.

“We are following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s mandate to streamline operations within the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, and fully utilize land areas that are not being developed. But we are leaving space on the table for negotiations with the erring company so that they may continue with their operations efficiently,” Chairman Tan said.

The official said that this is the first of many repossessions that the SBMA will conduct as the agency clamps down on erring companies who have skimped on their obligations to the SBMA. (MPD-SBMA)

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P15-M illegal fresh veggies shipment seized in Subic Freeport

Some P15-milion worth of fresh vegetables illegally shipped from China were confiscated here on Thursday through the coordinated efforts of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), Bureau of Customs-Port of Subic (BOC-Subic), and the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Plant Industry (DA-BPI).

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the fresh vegetables were found inside five 40-footer container vans that were declared to contain frozen assorted vegetables and consigned to Saturnus Corp., an importer based in Metro Manila.

The shipment was initially flagged on October 13 by authorities here for non-compliance with the approved sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance (SPS-IC) on temperature requirement and for ingress of non-importable fresh vegetables.

“We found out that the shipment contained chilled fresh vegetables that are considered illegal for importation into the country. These included various fresh produce such as water bamboo, mushrooms, broccoli, and other vegetables,” Eisma said.

The shipment was also found to contain undeclared agricultural products like sweet oats, she added.

Eisma, along with BOC District Collector Marites Martin and Agriculture Assistant Secretary for Economic Intelligence Federico Laciste Jr., inspected the contraband at the New Container Terminal here on Thursday afternoon.

Martin said her office already issued warrants of seizure and detention for the shipment, stressing that the consignee Saturnus Corp. was only given a permit to import frozen vegetables.

She stressed that the temperature of frozen commodities should be at -18 degrees Celsius, but that the refrigerated containers in the Saturnus shipment were at -1 degrees Celsius. “Thus, the issued SPS  Importation clearance is not applicable in the instant importation,” Martin added.

She said the Port of Subic “will definitely remain fully committed in securing the country’s borders from the entry of prohibited, smuggled goods, and all other illicit trades.”

Agriculture Asec Federico Laciste Jr., who is also the co-chair of the Economic Intelligence Sub-Task Group on Food Security, said the seizure of the illegal shipment was the “result of concerted efforts between government agencies such as the SBMA, DA-BPI, BOC, DTI, and other offices through the Economic Intelligence Sub-Task Group on Food Security.” 

He pointed out that the shipment violated the agency’s Administrative Order No. 18, series of 2000, and Sec. 19 of DA Department Circular 4, series of 2016, in relation to Section 1113 (f) of Republic Act No. 10863 otherwise known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).

Meanwhile, SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Ronnie Yambao said that the inter-agency team made a thorough search of the shipment, including a probe for any illegal drug or substance in the shipment, after initially finding violations on Wednesday.

He said the concerned agencies conducted a 10 percent physical examination of the shipment in the presence of the broker’s representative, and personnel of the BOC and SBMA. (MPD-SBMA)

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