SC to inspect FPIC pipeline April 15

(Updated 9:30 p.m.) BAGUIO CITY - The Supreme Court will hold an ocular inspection on the leaking oil pipe near the West Tower Condominium in Makati City on April 15. The decision was arrived at during Tuesday’s en banc (full court) session here. Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco Jr. will lead the inspection, which stemmed from allegations that the pipeline — operated by the Lopez-owned First Philippine Industrial Corp. (FPIC) — has two new holes. At a news conference, SC administrator and spokesman Jose Midas Marquez said the inspection will cover the areas near Capinpin and Del Pilar streets, which are within the condominium’s vicinity in Barangay Bangkal in Makati. He said the inspection will determine whether there is a need for the SC to temporarily lift the temporary environmental protection order (TEPO) it issued in November last year. Expected decision FPIC is asking for the temporary lifting of the TEPO so it can test the 117-kilometer pipeline’s structural integrity. In a statement on Tuesday, the firm said the court's resolution ordering the inspection was "expected" although it has yet to receive a copy of it. "Our next step would be to meet with the West Tower counsels and other concerned parties to coordinate the joint inspection as ordered by the Supreme Court," said FPIC president Anthony Mabasa. The conduct of the test is in compliance with the writ of kalikasan (environment) that the high court issued along with the TEPO. The issuance of the writ and TEPO — extraordinary orders in environmental cases — temporarily shut down the pipeline. Also on Tuesday, Marquez said that after the inspection, the case will be remanded to the Court of Appeals for further hearings. “A hearing is necessary and we all know we don’t conduct hearings in the Supreme Court," said Marquez. He added that the Court of Appeals is given 60 days to conduct the hearings. After which, the parties to the case are given 30 days to file their respective memoranda. Two more holes At a preliminary conference on the case last week, West Tower Homeowners Association president Roberto Dimayuga claimed that two new holes have been causing oil spillage at the condominium’s four-level basement. He said these holes are separate from the five holes that FPIC claimed it had already plugged. Dimayuga’s claim was supported by West Tower residents’ lawyer Lorna Kapunan. “The question is, are these new holes? Yes, and there will be more holes in the future," she said. Velasco said before it allows FPIC to examine the structural integrity of the pipeline, there must be an inspection first to determine the alleged existence of the two holes. FPIC and West Tower representatives then agreed to arrange for an inspection, with third-party observers from the University of the Philippines (UP) Department of Civil Engineering and UP-National Institute of Geological Sciences. - Sophia Dedace/KBK, GMA News