More responsive policies expected under new maritime council

FILE: A Chinese Coast Guard vessel (Photo from Joint Task Force West/Western Command via PNA)

MANILA – The creation of a National Maritime Council (NMC) will allow the executive branch to make well-informed decisions in a timely manner to soothe the anxieties of the merchant marine industry arising from the country’s dispute with China.

In an interview on Monday, Vice Admiral Eduardo Santos (ret.), president of the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP), said the existence of the high-level advisory body reassures the commercial shipping sector of protection within internationally recognized Philippine waters.

“Such a high-level council can help the President (Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.) consider all angles of the problem… helping him to arrive at reasonable and beneficial decisions that best reflect the interests of the (shipping) industry and the nation,” he told the Philippine News Agency.

Santos said the domestic maritime industry is putting its faith on the incumbent leadership’s ability to secure the country’s sea lanes and ensure that the free flow of goods remains unencumbered despite China’s aggressions.

The former Navy chief also pointed out that the newly formed council can advise Congress to finally push through with long-delayed legislation that will clearly delineate the Philippines’ archipelagic sea lanes.

Santos explained that the NMC effectively takes over from or encompasses the National Coast Watch (NCW) Center, an organization under the Office of the President that has historically been managed by the Philippine Navy and Philippine Coast Guard.

The NCW Center is mandated to be the central inter-agency mechanism for a coordinated and coherent approach to maritime issues and security operations.