City wants to co-manage Seafood Processing Plant
THE P100-million Seafood Processing Plant in Dagupan, bankrolled by the Korean government, could finally re-open by January but with a difference.
A plan to have the seafood plant jointly managed by the city government and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resource (BFAR) is in the offing.
PUNCH sources revealed that a draft memorandum on the new arrangement is already being prepared by BFAR officials in Manila in consultation with the office of the city mayor.
Dr. Westly Rosario, chief of the BFAR’s National Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center (NIFTDC) and interim manager of the plant, said the plan is to have the proposed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed by Dagupan City government and BFAR early next year.
Rosario said the memorandum will define the relationships based on a cost-and-income sharing agreement.
“I understand that based on the MOA, we are going to share the cost of operating the project at P35 million each year,” he said.
He, however, did not clarify how the proposed cost-and-sharing will be.
When reached for comment by the PUNCH, Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez said she is not aware of any plan to change the present management agreement with BFAR, as the sole manager of the plant.
“If the report is true, BFAR and the office of the city mayor should be reminded that any change in the present agreement will require the concurrence of the sanggunian,” Fernandez said.
Meanwhile, Rosario still requested for the full P35 million budget for 2012 from BFAR, an agency of the Department of Agriculture, in case the MOA does not push through.
The newly-built Seafood Processing Plant that briefly operated last year, was closed on October 7 upon the order of the BFAR central office following a demand from Mayor Benjamin Lim for certain permits from the local government unit (LGU), which actually co-owns the facility.
Lim earlier repeatedly indicated he wants the seafood processing plant in the hands of the city government, which was given to BFAR before he succeeded as mayor of Dagupan in 2010.
REQUIREMENTS
Rosario said they were later informed by the city’s One-Stop Business Center (OSBC) that the plant need not secure any permit at all from the LGU but was required to submit the blue cards, a certificate of good health, of its workers.
The OSBC also asked the plant to secure a certification from the Bureau of Food and Drug (BFAD) to ensure that it passes the required sanitary standard.
Rosario said he is optimistic the plant could reopen by early January after they had completed all the requirements earlier sought by the Dagupan City government.
“We did all what were requested from us in order to ensure the early reopening of the plant and to ensure that our workers can go back to their work at least before Christmas or New Year,” Rosario told newsmen.
More than 20 workers of the plant have been given blue cards after undergoing health examination at the City Health Office.
The plant has also been inspected by BFAD, reportedly with a high rating of 90.
“We are just waiting for the BFAD official certification that we will present to the OSBC before finally operating the plant,” Rosario said.
The Ambassador of Korea is expected to visit the plant soon to check on its status.
The Korean government provided a full grant for the construction of the facility, which is located on government-owned land in Barangay Bonuan Binloc.
Share your Comments or Reactions
Powered by Facebook Comments
