Covid-19 surge in Subic firm traced to parties

While social interaction remains important even during the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s still no time to party especially when minimum health requirements like wearing face mask and keeping physical distancing cannot be observed.

This was the lesson some employees of a business process outsourcing (BPO) company here recently learned the hard way after attending parties that might have served as super-spreading events, said Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma.

“As of latest count, 25 employees have tested positive for Covid-19 infection out of 65 workers who had to be placed on quarantine,” Eisma announced on Wednesday.

“Our health experts here have determined that were it not for parties that workers attended, all these hassles of quarantine and work stoppage would not have happened,” she added.

Dr. Solomon Jacalne, who heads the SBMA Public Health & Safety Department, said the surge in Covid-19 cases at the company was traced to two parties that employees attended last Nov. 14, a Saturday. The first was a beach party at Baloy, a popular beach area in Olongapo City, and the second was a pool party held in San Marcelino, Zambales.

Jacalne said contact tracing indicated that the employees who tested positive of Covid-19 either attended the parties or were exposed to co-workers who went to the said social gatherings.

But the doctor added that it was the unsafe behavior of employees that allowed further spread of the virus. “Some were not honest with their health declaration,” he noted. “They didn’t say they were sick and they reported for work just the same because of the company’s no-work-no-pay policy.”

Jacalne said the first case was recorded on Nov. 6, but the patient’s two identified close contacts had tested negative.  The next two positive cases were known on Nov. 17—a couple who declared as close contacts only those with whom they shared the shuttle bus.

“Then there came to be a sudden spike in the following days, from Nov. 19 to 25. And this was the only time when the employees admitted about the beach and pool parties—when there were already 16 positive cases,” Jacalne said.

After the parties were revealed, further investigation by tracers widened the circle of close contacts to a total of 65—all employees of the BPO firm. Out of these, 25 so far have tested positive of the virus.

Jacalne added that no other positive case was recorded at the firm in the last seven days and that all the suspect cases are now under quarantine in their respective areas in Zambales, Olongapo City and Bataan and awaiting schedule for RT-PCR test.

Following this development, Chairman Eisma ordered further investigation to determine additional safety measures to be imposed at the workplace.

Company officials said they have already installed barriers between work stations as early as August and have now positioned their call agents one workstation apart.

It was also learned that with 500 call center agents in its employ, the company intends to expand into a bigger area to comply with Joint Memorandum Circular No. 20-04-A, which provided for supplemental guidelines from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on workplace prevention and control of Covid-19.

Eisma said the SBMA will look into the possibility of leasing out a portion of a nearby building for the expansion area needed by the firm.

Eisma also urged companies in the Subic Freeport to forego the traditional company Christmas party this year to avoid the risk of virus transmission. "Let us stay safe. We can make Christmas more meaningful, more special and more rewarding by celebrating it with our family and household members this year," Eisma added. (MPD/SBMA)

Read More

More job opportunities out as Subic rebounds from pandemic

As businesses in the Subic Bay Freeport bounce back from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, more companies here are offering job opportunities to unemployed workers and residents sidelined by community quarantine lockdowns and business slowdown.

Last Tuesday, Nov. 24, a total of 185 work positions were offered by various companies in the second SBMA virtual job fair conducted as part of the 28^th founding anniversary of the Subic agency, said SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma.

“Subic is definitely back on track—although not on full speed as yet, but we are getting there, as you could see from the new job openings being offered,” Eisma pointed out.

She noted that a total of 2,139 job-seekers applied for the 185 positions offered. “This is proof that a lot of our kababayans needed jobs desperately under the circumstances, and I’d like to say that both the SBMA and the business locators here are stepping up to meet this rising demand,” Eisma said.

“This is pretty much a public-private effort. SBMA and the companies here are putting out new projects to create new jobs and to take in more workers as much as possible,” she added.

In the Nov. 24 job fair organized by the SBMA Labor Department, 11 Subic-registered companies offered a total of 54 job positions.

These included Sanyo Denki Philippines, Inc. and Subic Bay Freeport Grain Terminal Services, Inc., which both listed 10 job openings;  Uptimised Corporation, with 8; DBA Global Shared Services, Inc. and Subic Bay International Terminal Corp., with 5 openings each; Sams Group of Companies, Toyota Subic Inc., and United Auctioneers Inc., with 4 new positions each; Advanced Composite Systems Inc., with 2; and Subic Consolidated Projects, Inc. and S-Corp Phils., with 1 opening each.

On the other hand, 21 other companies elsewhere filed for request for recruitment assistance (RRA) with the SBMA with a total of 131 job offerings, said SBMA labor manager Melvin Varias.

Varias also noted that of the 2,139 applicants for various positions, 56.2% were from Olongapo City; 28% from Zambales; and 13.9% were from Bataan. The rest were applicants from Pampanga and the National Capital Region.

SBMA records also showed that 52.2% of the total applicants were male and 47.8% were female.

The companies that generated the most applicants were Sanyo Denki, with 180 applicants for the 10 job openings offered; United Auctioneers, with 154 applications for its four job openings; and Uptimised Corporation, which received 82 applications for its eight openings.

Meanwhile, Chairman Eisma also thanked participants in the blood donation drive organized by the SBMA and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) during the Nov. 24 anniversary event.

SBMA Deputy Administrator for Health and Safety Ronnie Yambao said the project collected 51 bags of blood for PRC Olongapo Chapter, with donors coming from Subic locators, residents, SBMA employees, the local police, and community volunteers.

Yambao said the SBMA is also coordinating with PRC Olongapo for the donation of any available plasma for Covid-19 patients under the convalescent plasma program. The plasma will be processed at the PRC’s national headquarters. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] SBMA Labor Department personnel monitor the filing of applications during the second SBMA virtual job fair on Nov. 24.

[2] Volunteers donate blood during the blood-letting project organized by the SBMA as part of the agency’s 28^th founding anniversary on Nov. 24.

Read More

SBMA cites service, excellence in 28th anniversary rites; Subic volunteers honored for ‘showing the way forward’

Service and excellence on the job took center stage here as the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) honored volunteers, employees and stakeholders during the agency’s simple 28^th founding anniversary ceremony last Tuesday.

In his speech at the Volunteers Park here during the Nov. 24 anniversary celebration, SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Marcelino Sanqui paid tribute to the more than 8,000 workers who served without pay in the early days of Subic and also recognized those who worked in the Freeport thereafter.

Sanqui spoke on behalf of SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma, who was not at the event but had issued her “anniversary salute” earlier. Eisma thanked volunteers “for showing the way forward”, SBMA employees “for service beyond self”, and Subic stakeholders “for keeping faith even in these trying times.”

Sanqui, who was among the pioneer SBMA volunteers like Eisma, said the being a volunteer “entailed sacrifices, but also provided unexpected heart-warming rewards—the feeling of pride and fulfilment.”

“We are here today to honor the volunteers and all the people, who in one way or another contributed in bringing this institution to where it is right now,” Sanqui said. “These include our frontliners, health workers, and fire fighters who until this moment are helping to rescue those affected by the recent typhoon, and all of you who provide continued public services during this time of pandemic,” he added.

In the same occasion, SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Support Services Ramon Agregado turned over a copy of the Workplace Handbook on Covid-19 Management and Prevention to business locators in the Freeport.

Philippine Coastal Storage and Pipeline Corporation (PCSPC) president and CEO David Attewill received the handbook, and expressed pride “that our people in Subic put safety first.”

At the same time, the SBMA recognized 15 employees who were cited by their respective strategic business unit (SBU) as employees of the year for 2019, honor titles that were not awarded early in February because of the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The SBU winners in Category 1 (contractual service) were: Nenita R. Sarmiento of Business and Investment Group; Ronald C. Fonseca, Chairperson and Administrator’s Group; Jose O. Madayag, Jr., Operations Group; Jonathan N. Labrador, Public Services Group; Jocelyn L. Gustilo, Regulatory Group; Mark Genesis G. Medina, Support Services Group; Jacklord Joseph J. Oceña, Support Services Group; and Louie P. Sarno of Public Services Group, who also bagged the overall title for this category. 

Meawhile, the awardees in Category 2 (permanent position) were: Amabelle Lynn F. Saclao of Business and Investment Group; Dante M. Salvaña, Chairperson and Administrator’s Group; Engr. Gerald P. Mendoza, Public Services Group; Ellenor O. Bautista, Regulatory Group; Joy Q. Manalang, Support Services Group; and Rolando L. Cepeda of Operations Group and Lina P. Sarmiento of Support Services Group, who tied for first place in this category.

The outstanding employees were cited for their excellent performance beyond the call of duty and for various innovations in the workplace.

The SBMA Labor Department also conducted an online job fair while the Public Health and Safety Group organized a bloodletting drive on November 24 as part of the agency’s 28^th anniversary celebration. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] SBMA law enforcement officers place a wreath at the Volunteers Park to honor the 8,000 volunteers during the 28th SBMA anniversary celebration at the Subic Volunteers Park on Tuesday.

[2] SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator Ramon O. Agregado (left) gives a copy of the Covid-19 Workplace Handbook to PCSPC CEO David Attewill during the 28th SBMA anniversary celebration on Tuesday.

[3] SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Marcelino Sanqui recalls his volunteer days with the Subic agency during the 28th SBMA anniversary celebration at the Subic Volunteers Park on Tuesday.

Read More

Subic services 37 ships under crew-change program

Two months after joining the government’s crew-change program, the Port of Subic has serviced a total of 37 ships and enabled more than 500 mostly Filipino seafarers to either take badly-needed rest or renew work aboard commercial vessels.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the crew-change program is a direct response to President Duterte's call that no one should be left behind in government efforts to ensure the safety of all Filipinos and provide assistance to vulnerable groups in face of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We understand that crew change is necessary for the health and safety of seafarers,” Eisma said. “And considering that around 80,000 Filipino seafarers with lapsed contracts are stranded aboard their ships, there is a lot to be done to ensure movement among seafarers, especially Filipinos, during this humanitarian and economic crisis.”

Subic started operations as a crew-change hub on September 10 with the arrival here of five Filipino seafarers who were stranded for about three months aboard MV Dapeng Star, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker based in Hong Kong.

Since then, One Stop Shop (OSS) Subic, the inter-agency task force which manages the Subic crew-change operations, has recorded a total of 260 “off-signers”, or inbound ship crew, and 255 “on-signers”, or outbound seafarers, as of Monday, November 9.

Of the total 515 seafarers who either arrived or departed in Subic under the program, only 24—or 12 on-signers and 12 off-signers—were foreigners.

Ships of all shapes and sizes have arrived here for crew-change. These included MV RTM Cook, a bulk carrier based in Singapore, with seven Filipino on-signers and 11 off-signers; LNG Dapeng Moon, a tanker based in Hong Kong, with five Filipino on-signers; MV Mindoro, a Panama-flagged vehicles carrier with three on-signers and two off-signers, all Filipino; MT Jason, a chemical tanker from Marshall Islands with 12 Filipino on-signers, and one Croatian and 13 Filipino off-signers; MT Euro Integrity, a Liberian-flagged crude oil tanker with 15 on-signers and 16 off-signers, all Filipino; and MV Nine Eagle, a Panama-flagged livestock carrier with five on-signers and five off-signers, all Filipino.

SBMA Seaport Department manager Jerome Martinez, meanwhile, stressed that OSS Subic has laid out strict health and safety protocols for the program, with all outbound and inbound seafarers undergoing RTC-PCR testing prior to departure from Subic or upon arrival at the Subic Bay International Airport.

“In case an on-signer tests positive, he is brought back point-to-point to Manila where he was swab-tested. Meanwhile, upon disembarking, off-signers are brought directly to the Subic-OSS for swab testing, after which they are transported to an isolation facility in Manila,” Martinez explained.

He added that in the two months period that crew-change has been undertaken in Subic, only one positive case among seafarers has been recorded.

Seafarers have been designated “key workers” by many countries, including the Philippines, which belong to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to enable them to travel to and from ships and ensure the operation of commercial vessels.

The IMO said that commercial ships now transport more than 80% of global trade by volume, including vital food and medicine, energy and raw materials, as well as manufactured goods. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] Inbound seafarers from MV Devon Bay, all clad in personal protective equipment, await transportation upon arrival at the Subic Bay Freeport on November 6.

[2] A sanitation worker disinfects baggage, as inbound seafarers from MV Devon Bay await transportation upon arrival at the Subic Bay Freeport on November 6.

Read More

SBMA temporarily opens Subic hotels to returning OFWs

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has opened several hotels here for the temporary accommodation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were brought home under the government’s emergency repatriation program.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said close to 400 OFWs were given temporary lodgings in quarantine hotels here since Sunday when Typhoon Rolly threatened Metro Manila and parts of Central Luzon with violent winds and heavy rain.

“We took them in for humanitarian reasons—and subject to strict health protocols— because there was a storm coming and our kababayans would be trapped at the Clark airport otherwise,” Eisma explained.

She said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), which is bringing about half a million OFWs back to the country, made a frantic call for help as hotels in Clark Freeport and Pampanga that were accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT) for such purpose were already full.

Eisma added that she requested clearance from local government units (LGUs) near Subic and they had agreed to take the OFWs in. The returning OFWs were swabbed at Clark airport before being brought to Subic quarantine hotels, she said.

According to the SBMA Tourism Department, a total of 104 OFWs arrived here on Nov. 1 and were billeted at various hotels accredited by the SBMA and the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) to take in OFWs and returning seafarers under the government’s crew-change program.

Of these OFWs in the first batch, 20 are already scheduled for transport to their respective homes after their RT-PCR tests had turned out negative, said SBMA tourism manager Jem Camba.

Another batch of OFWs consisting of 273 workers arrived here the following day, Nov. 2, after a similar request from the OWWA Region 3 office.

Camba said the repatriated OFWs were brought to accredited accommodation establishments like the Bayfront Hotel, Best Western Hotel Subic, Camayan Beach Resort, Horizon Hotel, Le Charme Suites, Mansion Garden Hotel, Segara Residencias, Subic International Hotel, Subic Bay Venezia Hotel, Terrace Hotel, Travelers Hotel, and Vista Marina.

The 13 hotels have a total of 528 rooms available for OFWs on quarantine.

Following the arrival here of repatriated OFWs during Typhoon Rolly, Eisma said the SBMA will consult with neighboring LGUs if they would agree to continue with the program.

“I’d be inviting representatives from the LGUs, OWWA, the Task Group on the Management of Returning Overseas Filipinos, and owners of Subic hotels and other stakeholders to a meeting so that we can finally decide the matter,” she added.

Eisma said that in a previous meeting, the SBMA had agreed to a request from LGUs to provide them with a list of workers from their communities who will work in quarantine hotels, so that proper Covid-19 precautions could be taken.

The SBMA further ordered participating hotels to house on-duty staff and to quarantine them after each two-week work schedule, she added.

“We will be taking all necessary health safety measures just like we did for the repatriation of Filipino seafarers under the crew-change program,” Eisma said, referring to the government initiative that was implemented here starting Sept. 10 after the LGUs gave their consent to the project. (MPD-SBMA)

Read More

For transparency: SBMA to conduct projects bidding online

As the Internet, and even social media, take on greater role in the delivery of government services during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) announced that it will henceforth conduct public bidding for big-ticket projects online.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said on Friday that the agency’s various Bids and Awards Committees (BAC’s) had decided that all future bidding processes will be conducted via online platforms and will be broadcast live through social media.

“Going online ensures transparency, efficiency, and safety,” Eisma stressed.

“The bidding process becomes faster, more transparent and credible, and at the same time it keeps participants secure from the Covid-19 virus,” she added.

For this purpose, the SBMA had recently created the Facebook page “SBMA Procurement Service”, which will be managed by the various BAC’s, Eisma said.

According to Atty. Michael Quintos, SBMA Deputy Administrator for Legal Affairs, the move to conduct bidding online is in accordance with Administrative Order 34, which was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte just last week, on  October 23.

While the AO requires all government offices to conduct online bidding of big infrastructure projects, the SBMA went one step further and decided to use social media platforms to go live during biddings for public viewing, Quintos said.

He also pointed out that in pre-pandemic times, and for projects worth P50 million and above, the SBMA Bids and Awards Committee already opened bids in the presence of observers from the Commission on Audit and disinterested non-government organizations to ensure transparency.

Eisma also noted that even before AO 34, the SBMA was already posting pre-bid announcements on the SBMA website and other online platforms on top of the required publication in newspapers of the invitation to bid.

“But putting the actual proceedings available for public viewing via social media would be one huge stride in SBMA’s efforts toward greater transparency. This will further strengthen the system,” Eisma added.

The SBMA chief also said that as the Covid-19 pandemic pushed practically the whole world to utilize Internet applications for business, the SBMA has been stepping up its adoption of new systems that would address new requirements and changing protocols.

She also noted that the agency has already established an online system of processing transactions with locators, suppliers, and other business entities a couple of years ago.

Among the online transactions that the SBMA has established are services provided for port users, electronic billing and payment, filing for regulatory requirements, and lately online job application and medical consultations. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Facebook page of SBMA Procurement Service

Read More

Taiwanese firm to manufacture face mask, PPEs in Subic

A newly-formed Taiwanese company in the Subic Bay Freeport will be manufacturing face masks and other personal protection equipment (PPEs) to help address a continuing demand for health safety gears, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the SBMA management has recently green-lighted the operation of Mask Secure King Inc. (MSK) to help increase the country’s production capacity for PPEs and other medical consumables.

Mask Secure King Inc., which is under the umbrella of Taiwanese construction and engineering giant MSK Group Work Inc., will set up a manufacturing facility here at the Subic Bay Gateway Park II where it has leased a 1,860-square meter building space from the Taiwanese real estate developer Xantheng Subic International Corp.

Eisma said the MSK has committed US$500,000 for the manufacturing project and will employ 35 workers during its first year of operation.

The firm will do business under the trade name “Secure Masks and Protective Gears.”

According to the SBMA Business and Investment Department for Manufacturing and Maritime (BID-MM), the Subic agency approved MSK’s proposal early this month after it filed for a Certificate of Registration and Tax Exemption (CRTE).

The firm’s registered business activity focused on the manufacture of medical devices, medical tools and equipment, medical consumable products, and personal protective gears and equipment.

Among the PPEs MSK will produce are medical disposable masks, gloves, foot and eye protection devices, protective hearing devices like earplugs and muffs, hard hats, respirators, and full body suits.

BID-MM manager Karen Magno said the SBMA has already endorsed to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) the purchase by MSK of mask machines from Taiwan, as well as the importation of non-woven mask materials for its Subic manufacturing operations.

MSK will be the first Subic-registered company to engage in the manufacture of health and safety products and personal protective gears, Magno said.

Another firm, which had since relocated to Bataan, previously produced in Subic only hospital textiles and garments.

Eisma said the operation of MSK will boost local production of N95 medical masks, PPE coveralls, as well as ventilators which had no known local producer prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

At the same time, she said it will bolster the growing confidence of Taiwanese manufacturers in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and further enlarge MSK’s development footprint here. 

The SBMA chief noted that the MSK Group had begun a P2-billion luxury residential project here in 2017 while Xantheng followed it up with a P15-billion green industrial park development project last year.

“Taiwanese investors, particularly the MSK Group, have been thriving here and continuously supporting and contributing to the development of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. This manufacturing project by MSK will be another welcome addition to our list of timely business projects here in Subic,” Eisma added. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Mask Secure King Inc., which will manufacture face masks and PPEs will be located at Phase 2 of the Subic Bay Gateway Park

Read More

SBMA: ‘Let’s make fight vs Covid-19 personal’

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has called on workers in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone to take a personal stand against Covid-19 in order to develop a culture of safety and thus enable the revival of the local economy.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma issued this appeal on Wednesday, as the Subic agency promoted the “Subic Bay Freeport Health and Safety Pledge and Promise to Humanity”, which seeks to inspire personal commitment among workers to imbibe and practice health and safety protocols both at home and in the workplace.

“So much is at stake in this fight against Covid-19—our personal safety, our livelihood, our family’s welfare, and the growth of the economy. So, we really need to take this fight to a personal level,” Eisma pointed out.

“We need healthy people to build a healthy economy, and it takes a personal commitment to safety in order to remain healthy in these very challenging times,” she added.

The safety pledge has been approved last month by the SBMA Board of Directors for implementation on a voluntary basis among SBMA employees and other Subic stakeholders.

SBMA Deputy Administrator for Health and Safety Ronnie Yambao said that more than instilling awareness of individual and collective roles in the fight against Covid-19, the pledge recognizes the severity of the health crisis and the need for individual commitments to slow down the spread of the virus around the world.

The pledge extracts a commitment to follow all health and safety protocols and maintain safety in workplaces at all times; to encourage other people to follow safety measures in order to save lives; and to be a good role model for co-workers, friends, and family on and off the job. 

Yambao added that the pledge “makes following protocols meaningful, rather than mechanical.”

He said the SBMA had since circulated the pledge among SBMA employees, asked celebrities to endorse and popularize the project, and encouraged business locators and their employees to do the same.

Eisma said that to further strengthen workplace response to Covid-19, the SBMA recently rolled out a series of web seminars to guide Subic Freeport companies in re-tooling and boosting their capacity to respond to challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In one instance, the SBMA Business Group gathered more than 250 company officials and employees for a discussion on the “Operational Framework of COVID-19 Response in Workplace,” which originated from the Department of Health (DOH).

During the webinar, which ran for a little over an hour, SBMA fire chief Ranny Magno also oriented the participants on techniques in workplace and public transport cleaning and disinfection.

SBMA Deputy Administrator for Business Renato Lee said this particular orientation was important, as business locators here sought best practices to adopt in order to keep the Covid-19 virus at bay.

More firms had requested for similar capacity-building seminars to help them become self-reliant in their Covid-19 response, Lee added.

“Subic stakeholders should realize what’s at stake,” Eisma noted. “The fact is that under the new normal, everything should be safe in order to be sustainable. This applies to corporate and even personal businesses.” (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] Celebrity endorsers of the Safety Pledge and Promise to Humanity include movie stars Tonton Gutierrez, Cherry Pie Picache, and Ronnie Lazaro, and Subic Customs Collector Marites Martin

[2] Safety Culture: Employees of Subic business locators undergo temperature scanning and listing before boarding a bus that would take them to work

Read More

SBMA launches online clinic for employees

In an effort to continue delivering medical and dental care to its employees during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) came up with another innovation— “Click-nika”, its own online health clinic.

Like the previous process at the SBMA Dispensary where employees consult with doctors who prescribe medications and provide advice on health care, SBMA’s “Click-nika” also dispenses patient care but through videoconferencing.

“This is clinic at one click—a marriage of modern technology and classic doctor’s advice,” said SBMA Chairman Wilma T. Eisma, who witnessed the launch of the telemedicine project by the SBMA Public Health and Safety Group on Wednesday, Oct. 21.

“This is really important because most of those in the health industry are now focused on the fight against Covid-19, and most people are apprehensive about visiting hospitals and clinics because of the risks of virus transmission,” Eisma said.

“Still, there is a need to take care of the health of our employees, and much more so amidst this pandemic. The SBMA Click-nika project not only provides essential health care, but also allows for peace of mind among patients and even medical staff,” she added.

The online clinic is already operational since its launch, said Ronnie Yambao, who is SBMA deputy administrator for health and safety and proponent of the project.

Yambao said the concept has been hatched months ago in the middle of the community quarantine imposed all over the country.

He said the program runs on a simple system, as employees only have to make an appointment through email to sbmaclicknika@gmail.com, and state the preferred date of consultation and indicate their Facebook account name.

PHSD personnel will then respond to the email within 24 hours, sending a consent form to be filled out by the patient and sent back through email.

Thereafter, consultation will be done through video call, Yambao explained.

In some demonstration during the project launch, a patient was seen taking his own vital signs and reporting the data to the consulting doctor. Another patient, meanwhile, showed photos of his teeth that need the services of a dentist.

Eisma said that the SBMA Click-nika would especially be useful to employees who have had to work from home either because they are among the elderly age or because they have comorbidities. “These ones are those who require regular check-ups,” she pointed out.

Yambao also said that with this project, the SBMA may yet be the first government agency in Central Luzon to have adopted telemedicine for its employees.

He added that the project may yet expand to encompass other stakeholders in the Subic Bay Freeport once additional manpower and other resources have been set up. (30)

PHOTO:

SBMA deputy administrator for health Ronnie Yambao, SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma, and Dr. Joane Sorvik discuss telemedicine procedures as a patient seeks medical advice online during the launch of the SBMA “Click-nika” online clinic last Wednesday

 

Read More

SBMA statement on imported wastes discovered at Subic Bay Freeport

Last Saturday, October 17, 2020, the Bureau of Customs at the Port of Subic raised an alert over two shipments consisting of 30 container vans declared to be containing old corrugated cartons for re-pulping. The shipments were transported from the United States via the container ship Ever Lyric and consigned to Bataan 2020, Inc., a paper manufacturer with a mill in Samal, Bataan.

The alert was based on information from the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) that said shipments are suspected to be in violation of R.A. 10863, or An Act Modernizing the Customs and Tariff Administration, in relation to DERNR Administrative Order 2013-22 (Revised Procedures and Standards for the Management of Hazardous Wastes).

After initial examination of five container vans, BOC-Subic declared that “the shipment revealed prohibited waste materials which were illegally imported.” BOC-Subic said it will undertake further inventory “to ascertain the volume and actual contents of the shipment.”

As manager of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) vehemently denounces this apparent attempt to smuggle waste materials into the country and likewise deplores the use of the Subic Bay Freeport as a transit point for this illegal trade.  

It was just last year — on May 31, 2019 — that we successfully banished from our shores 69 garbage-laden containers from Canada, of which 67 had stayed here in Subic in their putrid condition for several years. We don’t want that sordid chapter in our history to happen again.

We join all concerned government agencies in vigilance against illegal importations and urge that those found involved in this unlawful activity be properly prosecuted.

We cannot, and should not, condone the dumping of wastes from any country into our shores.

WILMA T. EISMA

SBMA Chairman and Administrator

October 22, 2020

Read More

SBMA sees further drop in Chinese workers at Subic

 As government officials expressed dismay over the rising number of Chinese retirees in the country, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) positively announced further decline in the number of Chinese workers in this premier free port, particularly those working in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation (POGO) industry.

According to SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma, Chinese workers employed by POGO firms here number less than five hundred today , compared to more than 1,500 just four months ago.

“This is because the POGO operators cannot do business after the declaration of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine last March, and thus were losing money,” Eisma explained.

“In fact one of the four POGO operators here, the Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp., has closed shop after losing P106 million, so it sent its workers back home to China,” she said.

“As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to affect POGO establishments, we can expect more Chinese workers here to be repatriated,” she added.

Eisma revealed this situation in Subic after public officials, among them senators Richard Gordon and Nancy Binay, noted during the recent Department of Tourism (DOT) budget hearing that a total of 27,678 foreigners from mainland China had availed of the Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV).

Pointing out that the youngest Chinese retiree in the country was just 35 years old, Gordon reportedly described the situation as “dangerous” for national security.

Eisma, however, said the situation in Subic “is nothing to be alarmed about, because the number of Chinese POGO workers is trending downwards, not upwards.”

According to figures from the SBMA Business Group, about 85% of the Chinese workers hired by POGO firms here have been retrenched since March when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the global economy hard.

The first casualty here was Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp., which ceased operations in June and retrenched all its 374 personnel, including 368 Chinese nationals and six Filipinos.

The company used to pay the SBMA an annual share of P533,700 on top of its monthly sublease fee of P84,000. However, the firm reportedly lost P106 million in revenue, hence its closure in June.

The remaining three POGO companies likewise reported cutbacks in employment: The Teleempire, Inc., which occupies an office building and two living quarters in this Freeport, reported a total of 409 Chinese workers last July, but this has gone down to 242 as of Sept. 28.

Another firm the Northfolk Information Technologies, Inc., which provides backroom services to a POGO operator based in Olongapo City, listed 225 Chinese employees last July, but has whittled down the number to 100 as of Sept. 28.

Ekxinum. Inc., which used to occupy four buildings at the Cubi area here, has now left three buildings vacant and reduced its Chinese worker complement from 231 active visa holders, with 169 on process last July, to 42 active visa holders, with 14 on process as of Sept. 28.

The three POGO firms maintain a total of 170 Filipino workers as of Sept. 28, SBMA records indicated.

Eisma said the POGO operators in Subic are not expected to resume operations anytime soon, as even some online gaming operators in Manila that cater to the Chinese market have recently exited the Philippines. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] The former office of the Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp. in the Subic Bay Freeport remains empty

[2] A sign at the Gateway Hub building that used to house the Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp. says it is now open to new tenants

Read More

Eisma confirms SBMA, Olongapo ‘on the same page’

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma confirmed that the neighboring communities of Olongapo City and Subic Bay Freeport continue working together to promote progress and development for their common stakeholders.

“We’re on the same page,” Eisma said on Friday, stressing that friendship and cooperation had long been the cornerstone of Subic-Olongapo relations.

“I believe that we have a shared mission, that we have to get our acts together despite some friction that crop up in the minutiae of operations, which is but normal between two separate entities that work in close proximity,” she added.

Eisma asserted this a day after Olongapo City Mayor Rolen “Len J” Paulino Jr., in an interview with Press Secretary Martin Andanar over Radyo Pilipinas, described a “symbiotic” relationship between Subic and Olongapo.

The mayor’s pronouncement belied charges made recently on social media that the SBMA lacked coordination with city officials on matters like Covid-19 control measures and that it was building a “wall” between the two communities.

In the said interview, Mayor Paulino stressed that the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and Olongapo City have a mutually beneficial relationship and that coordination between the two entities has boosted the local economy.

“Actually, the relationship is very symbiotic; it’s mutual. Olongapo supplies manpower (to) the Subic Bay Freeport, and on the other hand, the Freeport is, of course, a major source of employment for Olongapo residents,” Paulino explained.

“It’s a big help, in addition to the business establishments here in Olongapo,” he added.

Paulino also told Andanar that the city government and SBMA had coordinated with each other in establishing health safety measures after the Covid-19 pandemic broke out.

“We continue to coordinate with each other to ensure the control of Covid transmission, so that we can also prevent business disruption. And, of course, when we ensure the continuity of business operations, we also ensure the financial security of our people,” he added.

Following this, Eisma said the SBMA will further initiate cooperation projects with Olongapo and other local government units near the Subic Bay Freeport to improve local response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is another common ground where we can pool our resources and contribute best practices so that we can balance health and economy, and together beat Covid-19,” Eisma said. “In fact, we have already agreed to regularly meet to discuss Covid-19 strategies.”

She also confirmed that the neighboring city is the biggest provider of workers in the Freeport, with a total of 58,957 as of June this year, or almost 43 percent of the Subic workforce. Because of this, Olongapo consistently receives the biggest revenue share from the SBMA among the eight beneficiary local government units contiguous to the Freeport, she added.

Eisma also put to rest the issue that the SBMA is building a wall to separate the Freeport from Olongapo, whose original Spanish-era settlement now comprises the Freeport’s central business district. She clarified that the agency is simply replacing the US Navy-era cyclone wire fence with concrete to avoid costly repairs.

“We are not building a wall to divide the Subic-Olongapo community. What we are actually doing is protecting the single biggest local asset that Olongapeños and other stakeholders in Zambales and Bataan have built and nurtured all through these years,” Eisma said.

“This is our legacy and it is our common task to protect it,” she added. (30)

PHOTO: 

File photo show SBMA Chairman Wilma T. Eisma and Mayor Rolen Paulino Jr. during SBMA-LGU meetings before the Covid-19 pandemic

Read More

SBMA approves cashless public buses for Subic Freeport

To further promote public health safety in face of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has approved a cashless public transportation system in this premier Freeport.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the agency has recently given its go-signal for Autokid Truck Solutions to create a line of public utility buses that will utilize an automated fare collection system (AFCS) and be compliant with social-distancing rules as well.

“This is an innovative concept that fulfills a felt need in this time of the pandemic, so we’re going for it,” Eisma said.

“With this, we can minimize the dangers of virus transmission, thus creating a better environment for workers, residents and visitors in the Subic Freeport,” she added.

According to Autokid Subic Trading Corporation CEO Kevin McHale Yao, the proposed project would provide an efficient, environment-friendly, and safe and comfortable transportation for the public.

“Public transportation services (PTS) is a vital part of modern urban economies. An efficient PTS encourages passengers to use public services instead of private vehicles,” Yao said.

“This preference reduces traffic, air and noise pollution, and accident rate in cities,” he added.

Foremost among the features of the new system is the use of loadable payment cards that would preclude the need for passengers to carry cash for their bus fare.

Yao also stressed the added advantage of predictable travel time, as the firm would regularly deploy vehicles at a certain time period so that the public would know exactly when to expect the buses.

The company has proposed three bus routes in Subic’s Central Business District. One will be from Kalaklan Terminal to Main Gate Terminal and vice versa, another from Main Gate Terminal to Royal Duty Free and vice versa, and the third from Main Gate Terminal to Kalaklan to Royal Duty Free to Main Gate.

The proposed fares will be P25 per person for the first two routes, and P30 per person for the third route, which is longer.

The SBMA and the company are already discussing a dry-run of the routes for which the buses will be fielded to see how the plans would actually work out.

Yao also pointed out that Autokid will field environment-friendly buses that are Euro IV-compliant, using Yuchai engines. He added that the units will be equipped with comfortable seats, air-conditioning, a global positioning system (GPS), and closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) to ensure the safety of the riding public.

Following the approval of Autokid’s proposal last month, the SBMA had required the firm to register its fleet of motor vehicles and have its drivers accredited by the agency.

The SBMA and the company are already discussing a dry-run of the routes for which the buses will be fielded to see how the plans would actually work out. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Autokid public utility buses using an automated fare collection system will soon see operation in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone

Read More

SBMA frontliners get P22.73-M hazard pay for ECQ work

Workers in the frontline and essential services of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) received a total of P22.73 million in hazard pay for physically reporting for work assignments here during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the compensation was released under Administrative Order No. 26 dated March 23, 2020, which granted hazard pay to government employees and contract workers during the public health emergency at the amount of P500 per day per person.

The SBMA board of directors duly approved the release of the hazard pay based on recommendations of the management last August, Eisma added.

“Most of those who received significant amounts are security officers and firefighters, who were on field assignments at a time when most of our departments worked from home,” Eisma pointed out.

“The security officers enforced border controls, while the firefighters disinfected offices, facilities and public places to keep the Subic community safe,” she added.

According to the SBMA Finance Group, a total of 1,739 employees benefited from the release. These included 1,074 employees in plantilla positions, 550 workers engaged through contract of service, 101 personnel under government contracting, and 14 casual hires.

SBMA data indicated that plantilla employees received an average of P13,438 hazard pay, while contract workers got an average of P12,912.

Finance Group head Antonietta Sanqui said that under guidance from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the SBMA computed the hazard pay at P62.50 per hour from the P500 per-day government ceiling and applied this pro-rata to actual number of work hours based on daily time records.

The biggest amount went to two security officers, who each received P61,500. They logged in a total of 984 man-hours each since March 17 when the ECQ came into effect, and until May 31.

On the other hand, the smallest pay amounting to P131.25 went to 16 mostly office workers, who logged in just 2.1 hours at their workplaces during the ECQ.

Prior to the release of hazard pay, the SBMA Accounting Department reviewed the number of hours logged in by each personnel in the ECQ, computed the difference between Covid 19 hazard pay and the magna carta hazard pay received by public health workers, and deducted corresponding withholding taxes.

Under DBM guidelines, government employees such as public health workers and uniformed personnel who are already entitled to hazardous duty pay or hazard allowance may also receive the Covid-19 hazard pay, whichever is higher. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:  

Frontline service workers received the biggest hazard pay released by the SBMA for work during the ECQ

Read More