CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY : Former Senate President Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. today assailed the reported plan of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to spend nearly P400 million for the rehabilitation of Macabalan Port in Cagayan de Oro city, calling it “overpriced” and “patently disadvantageous to the government.”

“Why should the PPA and the Department of Transportation and Communications spend such a big amount for port rehabilitation when the French contractor of modular ro-ro (roll-on, roll-off) ports has offered to build a new wharf and passenger terminal for only P143 million in Cagayan de Oro City?”, Pimentel asked.

“The PPA port project would be plain and simple highway robbery if ever it is implemented,” Pimentel said.

The DOTC and PPA had thumbed down as overpriced the proposal of French construction firm Eiffel Matiere to build modular ro-ro ports nationwide, with the PPA claiming that it can build ports for only P40-50 million each.

“The PPA wants to cancel the ro-ro contract with the French as overpriced, yet here they are proposing to rehabilitate the Cagayan de Oro port for an astronomical sum,” Pimentel said.

The proposed PPA project involves the construction of a new passenger terminal at a cost of P250 million; paving of a newly completed 2.1 hectare backup area (P71.27 million) and the construction of three additional ro-ro berthing facilities and dolphins     (P50 million).

The P50 million allotted for ro-ro facilities is only for a three-unit roro berthing facility to be appended to existing berths and port facilities. It is not for an entire, stand-alone complex as proposed by the French consortium.

The PPA, however, decided instead to build a new one for P250 million.

Pimentel said the DOTC’s priorities are highly questionable since it has decided to upgrade port facilities even when the number of sea-going passengers has not increased substantially.

Citing data from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and PPA, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) has reported that while air passengers increased by 19% from 2009 to 2010, sea-going passengers only increased by 4.03% from the two-year period from 2009 to 2011.