Supreme Court E-Library
Information At Your Fingertips

  View printer friendly version

The Maritime Industry Board in its Special Meeting held on 10 August 1999, approved the following:

I
Coverage
All owners/operators of passenger-carrying liner vessels authorized to operate in the domestic trade and accredited by the Department of Tourism (DOT), except motorized boats 20GT and below.

II
Rationale
The introduction of an additional type of passenger accommodation is deemed appropriate and realistic, designed to give due cognizance to the varied preferences of passengers thereby providing them with more alternatives from which to choose from, while at the same time enabling the shipowners/operators to maximize their opportunities for competition under a liberalized environment, through an additional window being provided to shipowners/operators from which to avail of deregulated rates.

III
Second Class, Non-Airconditioned Passenger Accommodation
There is hereby adopted an additional type of passenger accommodation for DOT-accredited passenger-carrying vessels in the domestic trade, to be henceforth referred to as SECOND CLASS, NON-AIRCONDITIONED.

IV
Minimum Service Standards
The herein adopted Second Class, Non-Airconditioned passenger accommodation shall have the following minimum service standards:

Areas of Concern	Category 1 (LYING)	Category 2 (SEATING)
2.1 Type of Accommodation	Dormitory or Open Space with partitioning wall enclosures	Fiberglass seats
2.1.1 Deck Sheating	Vinyl or similar materials materials	Non-skid
1.1.2 Minimum requirements for berth/seating dimension/ arrangement
*Size of berth/seat	1.83 m. x 0.61 m.	0.46 m (width) x
		0.30 m (depth) x
		0.40 m (height) x
*Berth/Seat arrangement	Single or two-tier	Shall not exceed 6 seats in a row
*Passageway	0.61 m width	0.38 m. between rows and 0.91 m. passage ways at aisle
2.2 Number of Passengers	Determined by the no. of properly constructed fixed single or two-tier berths	Determined by the no. of permanently fixed seats
2.3 Toilet and Bath
2.3.1 Number	One (1) T & B per 50 passengers (separate for men and women)	Toilet only (separate for men & women)
2.3.2 Location	Same deck level of accommodation to be served	Same deck level of accommodation
2.4 Supplies
2.4.1 Furniture/Fixtures:
*Ash/waste bin	To be provided	To be provided
* PA System	To be provided	To be provided
* Electric Fan	To be provided	To be provided
* Baggage Rack	To be provided	To be provided
* Toilet Soap &	To be provided	To be provided
Tissue Paper in
T & B
2.4.2 Bedding/Curtains
*Curtains for Porthole	To be provided
* Beddings & Linen	To be provided
2.5 Ventilation	Open Air or forced draught ventilation for enclosed spaces	Open Air or forced draught ventilation for enclosed spaces

V
Guidelines for Implementation
1. Owners/Operators of covered passenger/carrying liner vessels intending to provide herein adopted SECOND CLASS, NON-AIRCONDITIONED passenger accommodations shall first have such accommodations in their concerned vessels inspected by MARINA surveyors and obtain the corresponding Certificate of Compliance thereof, prior to offering such accommodations to the public. It is understood however, that the vessel availing of this Circular shall still comply with the provisions of Batas Pambansa No. 344 on the needed accommodations, facilities and amenities for disabled persons.

2. A notice to the public by posting in conspicuous places in publicly-owned ports shall be made by the concerned owners/operators at least two (2) weeks prior to implementation of such type of accommodation, providing therein the various types of accommodation to be made available in a particular vessel, the number of passenger allocations for each type of accommodation and the corresponding passenger rates to be charged for each, subject to the provisions of M.C. No. 37 and M.C. No. 76 granting discounts to students and senior citizens.

3. The adoption of the herein provided SECOND CLASS, NON-AIRCONDITIONED passenger accommodation by owners/operators of passenger-carrying vessels shall be limited only to the existing THIRD CLASS accommodation of the particular vessel concerned.

VI
Amendment/Modification of Existing Circulars
MARINA M.C. Nos. 65/65-A are hereby amended accordingly, and all other MARINA Circulars having reference to M.C. No. 65/65-A are likewise modified accordingly to take cognizance of the herein adopted additional type of passenger accommodation.

VII
Sanctions and Penalties
Violation(s) of any of the provisions provided herein, shall after due notice and hearing, be subject to the following administrative fines and penalties:

1. FIRST OFFENSE — P25,000 without prejudice to the withholding/cancellation of the grant of authority to adopt the herein additional type of passenger accommodation.

2. SECOND OFFENSE — P50,000 without prejudice to the withholding/cancellation of the grant of authority to adopt the herein additional type of passenger accommodation plus the suspension of franchise (CPC, PA, SP) for a maximum period of three (3) months.

3. THIRD AND SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES — P100,000, without prejudice to the withholding/cancellation of the grant of authority to adopt the herein additional type of passenger accommodation plus the revocation of franchise (CPC, PA, SP).

VIII
Effectivity
This Memorandum Circular shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication once in the Official Gazette or newspaper of general circulation.

Adopted: 10 Aug. 1999

(SGD.) AGUSTIN R. BENGZON
Administrator