By HENRY EMPEÑO

MASINLOC, Zambales — The municipal government of Masinloc, Zambales has put two ships long-docked at a barangay port here for public auction, inviting interested parties to submit bids for the sale of the vessels that were forfeited in favor of the government.

A notice of auction sale issued by Engr. Ellender C. Eclevia, chairman of the Municipal Inventory, Appraisal and Disposal Committee (MIADC), identified the two abandoned vessels as MV Grit and MV Zhonghai 69.

Both vessels, which are currently docked off Barangay Bani, site of the Masinloc coal-fired thermal plant, were the subject of a hold order issued on January 14, 2022 by the Regional Trial Court in Iba, Zambales.

The notice of auction sale had scheduled bidding activities as follows: viewing on Aug. 11; pre-auction conference on Aug. 17; submission of sealed proposals on Aug. 23; and opening of sealed bids also on Aug. 23.

The Masinloc government has not yet announced any winning bid as of press time, but Eclevia said the LGU “has reserved the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to waive any formalities or defects found therein and annul the bidding process, and reject proposals at any time prior to contract award without thereby incurring any liability to the affected auctioneer or auctioneers.”

The LGU also reserved the right “to accept only such bids most advantageous to the government,” he added.

According to a vessel tracker, MV Grit is a 27-year-old dredger that flew the Panamian flag. It has been in Masinloc for almost four years, having sailed from Japan on October 24, 2019 and reaching Zambales on November 6, 2019.

On the other hand, MV Zhonghai 69 is on record as a vessel that sailed from China on December 12, 2019, and was reported in June 2020 to have run aground off Botolan town, with the vessel’s engine room and compartments having been flooded with seawater.

Z2K Resources, Inc., a Filipino firm which claimed ownership of the vessel, clarified that it was an aggregates carrier and was not doing dredging work when it ran aground.

The firm filed a request dated March 17, 2022 to relocate the vessel to Bani, Masinloc for drydocking and repairs. However, on November 23, 2022, authorities found out that there was unauthorized cutting and salvaging being made on said vessel.

Following findings of probable cause for violation of the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in the Port of Manila issued a warrant of seizure and detention against MV Zhonghai 69 on April 28 this year.

After the claimant failed to overcome the burden of proof in forfeiture proceedings, the BOC though Manila District Collector Maritess Martin issued an order for the forfeiture of MV Zhonghai 69 in favor of the government last May 31. 