Cruise chaos at Port of Manila Manila Times

[Lee]

Part 2 to follow in next post

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WHAT was promoted as a visit to the "Pearl of the Orient Seas" — the Philippines — became a nightmare for 2,500 tourists on board the Norwegian Jewel cruise ship. The vessel anchored in Manila on November 30 with a shipload of tourists who were part of a 10-day Southeast Asian cruise. Pier 15 in Manila was their last stop.

Mr. Nelson Terible posted about it on Facebook, which has since gone viral. He said that at least two more cruise ships from the Norwegian Cruise Line were supposed to visit the Philippines, along with several others, including Holland America. We just don't know if these cruise ships will still include the Philippines in their stop after this terrible mess.

Our incensed informant writes: "Upon disembarkation, we were led to an open parking space where we could pick up our luggage, exposed to the searing heat (10 a.m.-12 noon)... There were approximately 20 porters to service 2,500 passengers, mostly seniors with full luggage (hand-carry and the usual 20 kg of luggage).

"You don't usually need a porter or luggage cart. But the conditions in the port are different. You have to retrieve your luggage in an open car park with an uneven surface and negotiate through a narrow, congested, 2-meter walkway [filled] with potholes...
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"After retrieving our luggage, we were directed to a hall with a 2.5-meter entrance. With the volume of passengers, congestion was inevitable. Our nightmare started upon entering what looked like a hall that could accommodate only around 1,000 people. We were greeted by two to three customs personnel, supposedly to collect our declaration forms. But we told them that it was already given at the Puerto Princesa port of entry.

 
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"We asked why is there only one exit considering the heavy buildup of passengers. Can the other exits be opened? They said, 'Ayaw nila' (referring to the Ports Authority personnel)... Nobody could move; we were packed like sardines carrying big [pieces of] luggage that we couldn't leave and shuffling slowly.

"That was our last encounter with any personnel at Pier 15. It also marked the start of our ordeal to negotiate our way out of what felt like a trap. It took us an hour to get out... and we thought that the worst was over.

"From the entrance of that hall to the exit that led to the driveway was a distance of only about 150 meters. But it took us at least 1.5 hours to get to the narrow exit there. With luggage in tow (mostly seniors up to 80 years, with a few in wheelchairs), we were left on our own... One lady in a wheelchair was being pushed by an NCL personnel, who was telling her that he needed to get back. But at the same time, he couldn't leave her alone in that situation.

"We could see several Ports Authority personnel and officials watching us in adjoining glass-paneled air-conditioned offices. But no one bothered to help or take charge of the chaos that they could clearly see ensuing.

"Upon exiting the hall, we had to negotiate a 2-meter wide walkway that was broken and uneven, making it incredibly challenging to pull or push our luggage. This was made worse by the fact that the walkway is where the blowers of the air conditioners of the PPA were placed every 2 to 3 meters, while the midday sun blasted at us from above. We could only move inch by inch because of the congestion, as well as not having anywhere else to pass. It was agonizing.

"Finally, after at least another half hour, we reached the area where guests could be fetched by their families or contracted service vehicles. It was in total chaos. Again, no one was manning the area, no one ensuring order. The traffic inside Pier 15 made it futile for us to wait for our service. We decided to walk up to the entrance of the Philippine Coast Guard compound, another 100-meter walk under the midday sun.

"But again, the pedestrian exit at Pier 15 was only around 1.2 meters wide. With a lot of people trying to get out, we had difficulty with our movements. It was a sad, pitiful and traumatic experience. There was an absolute lack of concern from the PPA personnel to ensure a safe, comfortable, and pleasurable disembarkation experience.

"If anybody had panicked or had a medical emergency, the congestion would have made it impossible to get help, especially since we didn't see anyone to ask for help from. I also spotted unscrupulous individuals trying to make a deal with some foreigners... I overheard one foreigner remark, 'What? That's too expensive.'

"We also heard some foreigners saying very negative remarks, some of them even cursing and saying: 'Never again, Philippines.' We Filipinos, mostly balikbayan retirees, tired from the almost two-hour ordeal in the midst of heat, thirst and hunger, just bowed our heads in shame. 'Wala na sigurong pag-asa mabago ang sistema sa Pilipinas (Perhaps there's no more hope to improve the system in the Philippines,' was all they could say in desperation.)

"We disembarked at seven ports: Thailand. Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Puerto Princesa and Boracay — and we all had a very pleasant experience. So what went wrong? It's not about the lack of resources nor fund allocation. Just some care and consideration, and of course, planning. The PPA and the Bureau of Customs are aware of the number of tourists arriving and the time of their arrival."

In the next column, we will hear the proposed solutions to this great mess at Port 15. We will also read the statement (or handwashing?) from the Philippine Ports Authority. Stay tuned, folks.

 

https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/12/23/opinion/columns/cruise-chaos-at-port-of-manila/1925330
 

[Lee]

PPA response to cruise chaos at Port of Manila

 

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WE continue with the viral Facebook post on the cruise chaos at the Port of Manila and what could have been done. Our informant gave sound suggestions.

"If the Philippine Ports Authority cannot provide baggage tents, they could have used the Customs clearance hall (which they did before with the Star Cruises).
The Bureau of Customs could have used a tent right after the (old) tourists disembarked from the Norwegian cruise ship and before entering the baggage hall. This was also done before.

This lessens the distance that the tourists have to go through and prevents exposure to the midday sun. What if it rains, many of the passengers asked? It would have been a disaster, a much more pitiful sight, since most of the passengers were senior citizens who just wanted to visit the Philippines.

Enough porters should have been deployed. Not even 1 percent of the arriving 2,500 tourists can be served by only 20 porters. Moreover, passengers should have been allowed to pass through the air-conditioned hallway up to the main entrance, where they could be picked up by relatives, as was done before.
But what happened? They converted the hallways into offices, most of which are empty anyway. They did not consider the safety, comfort and convenience of the tourists. We could have avoided navigating the narrow walkway, where the hot air from the air conditioners blasted at the passengers.

The PPA could also have mobilized at least 4 to 6 personnel to guide the tourists as they lined up at the exit hall, and control the flow of people. But there were none, all through our 1.5-hour ordeal...

Coordination could have been done with the Department of Tourism to have help desks for tourists, inquiring about hotel accommodations and transport services. You can just imagine the stress of the passengers without pre-arranged transport and hotel bookings.

Most countries that thrive on tourism, such as Greece and Southeast Asian countries like Thailand and Vietnam, have organized and efficient tourism-friendly systems and infrastructure run by their governments.
The Philippines has so much to learn from its Asian neighbors, especially Thailand. With our white sand beaches, stunning tourist attractions, rich heritage, delectable food and our hospitality, all that we need is support from our government to optimize our tourism potential. Our tourism infrastructure is sorely lacking.

In the early 1980s, at the height of the Philippine economic crisis, many of my colleagues and I sought greener pastures in the US, Canada, and other progressive countries. With a young family and with bankable credentials, I could have easily left our country for good. But I always retorted with the patriotic hymn, "Bayan Ko, Sino Pa," which I composed in 1983.

Now in my twilight years, my love and patriotism for our country is as strong as ever. I am still hoping that one day, maybe, just maybe, we will all wake up to a new and better Philippines.

In the interest of fair play and journalistic fairness, let us give space to the side of the Philippine Ports Authority in their statement on the issue given on December 21:

"The PPA put the hammer down as it slapped a 30-day suspension against ship agent Ben Line Agencies, Inc., and shore excursion provider Travel People Ltd., after a cruise disembarkation fiasco at the Port of Manila went viral. (The Manila Times is the only newspaper that covered this issue extensively, through my column.)

"After a thorough investigation of the chaos that occurred during the docking of the MV Norwegian Jewel cruise ship at the Port of Manila last November 30, the regulator has suspended the permit to operate (PTO) of Ben Line Agencies and Travel People Ltd. for 30 days.

"According to PPA PMO NCR South Port Manager Catherin Esto, her office was not satisfied with the explanation made by both companies about the disorganized disembarkation process that affected thousands of passengers.

"PPA general manager Jay Santiago, for his part, said that the suspension period will give the operators more time to review their processes to further improve their services and ensure that a similar incident does not happen again.

"'This kind of incident is unacceptable, especially since there were per-arrival meetings to prepare for the turnaround call where about 2,300 passengers will disembark and 2,500 passengers will also board the cruise ship,' Santiago emphasized.

"With their permits suspended for 30 days, PPA said both companies will not be allowed to provide services for another cruise tour schedule to arrive on January 6, 2024. They won't be allowed to provide services, and probably another agent or service provider will be engaged by the arriving cruise ship.

"'We will not allow this incident to happen again because it is embarrassing to those who visit the country,' Santiago lamented.

"According to Santiago, the PPA continues to improve port facilities to receive big cruise ships as the Philippines was recently named as the Best Cruise Destination in Asia for 2023... 'So, our partners should also improve in servicing passengers. We just want to correct the deficiencies in the viral post and thank Mr. Nelson Terible for bringing this to the public's attention'."

All's well that ends well then, with the black eye only given to the two agents that messed up and spoiled the tourists' good image of the Philippines.

 

https://www.manilatimes.net/2023/12/30/opinion/columns/ppa-response-to-cruise-chaos-at-port-of-manila/1926096
 

[Freebie]

And yet you arrive in Siquijor or Bantayan by ferry and theres always more than 20 porters who clamber on even before the ferry docks searching for those who need/want porters, for a passenger load of usually a couple hundred.

This cruise ship story was repeated in many media outlets.. black eye for the Philippines regardless of which companies were involved.

[craftbeerlover]

11 hours ago, Lee said:

The PPA put the hammer down as it slapped a 30-day suspension against ship agent Ben Line Agencies, Inc

whoopie FN do