COMPENSATION. Residents of Barangay Amaya 5, Tanza, Cavite can only stare at the oil spill off Limay, Bataan that reached their coastal village on July 30, 2024. Department of Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez on Saturday (Aug. 17) said the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds is ready to compensate the victims of the oil spill. (PNA photo by Joan Bondoc)
MANILA – An official of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Saturday said the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (IOPC) is ready to indemnify local government units (LGUs) that shelled out funds to mitigate the effects of the oil spill in Bataan.
DOJ Undersecretary Raul Vasquez said the IOPC is currently looking at the expenses incurred LGUs to help those affected by the maritime disaster.
“As we speak, iyong institutional claimants, LGU na nag-advance, nagbigay ng ayuda, naglinis etcetera, iyong mga government agencies na gumamit ng contingency fund nila para sugpuin o harapin at i-contain iyong oil spill, lahat ngayon iyan ay ina-access ng IOPCF para bayaran (the institutional claimants, the LGUs which provided aid, conducted cleanup drives, as well as government agencies which used contingency funds to contain the oil spill, all of them are being accessed by the IOPCF for indemnification),” Vasquez said at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.
He reported that some 52,000 fisherfolk from Bataan and Cavite have been affected by the oil spill.
The provincial government of Bataan and Cavite are helping identify the roughly 21,000 who are probable claimants of the compensation.
He said they used as template the 2023 Mindoro oil spill in coming up with the proper payment for the affected individuals.
“Ginamit naming template iyong Mindoro oil spill at ang magandang balita doon ay automatically lumabas iyong may-ari ng Terranova at saka lumabas iyong insurer nila at saka iyong IOPC,” he said.
“And the owner of the Terranova, the insurer, as well as the IOPC, have already signified their readiness to pay,” he added.
He said that based on the template, each affected individual may be getting initial payment ranging from PHP10,000 to PHP50,000.
The MTKR Terranova, carrying some 1.4 million liters of industrial fuel oil, sank off Lamao Point in Limay, Bataan on July 25 at the height of inclement weather due to Super Typhoon Carina and the enhanced southwest monsoon.
The Philippine Coast Guard said Friday that around 2,500 liters of oil have been recovered so far.
Oil siphoning from one of eight tankers of the Terranova began on Wednesday. Each tank is estimated to contain 175,000 liters of industrial fuel oil. (PNA)
