By Emme Rose Santiagudo
There is no truth that John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University (JBLFMU) is facing closure due to non-compliance to international standards.
This was reiterated by Capt. Luis Evidente, JBLFMU executive assistant, following reports insinuating that the university will be shut down for non-compliance with Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) standards and undergoing the European Maritime Safety Agency Audit (EMSA).
“Wala sang kamatuoran nga isira ang JBLFMU. It is not outright closure. All these evaluations and inspections are common. We always address whatever findings there are,” Evidente said in a phone interview on Friday.
According to Evidente, the statement of MARINA being used by reports circulating on social media is not comprehensive and can confuse the public with the term “closure.”
“The statement coming from MARINA is not as comprehensive as it should be,” he stressed.
A national daily reported that 61 out of the 91 maritime schools in the country were recommended for closure due to failure to comply with the required international standards of MARINA.
The report also indicated that JBLFMU will be among the maritime schools that will be subjected to EMSA.
Local media outlets also reported the story, causing fear among students and parents that the school is facing closure.
Dr. Ronald Raymond Sebastian, JBLFMU Chief Executive Officer, clarified that the MARINA regulation standards differ from EMSA.
“The recommendation for closure by MARINA, as stated herein, of the 61 schools is a different matter to the EMSA audit where JBLFMU is mentioned to be included. We have always been compliant with the MARINA standards and in fact, we remain as a benchmark for maritime education for the agency,” he said in a statement.
MARINA covers the assessment maritime education, training and certification through the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers in the maritime schools in the country.
When schools have deficiencies, MARINA will require the school to send a compliance report with corrective actions through the Commission on Education (CHED).
“Upon compliance report, CHED and MARINA will analyze and go back if acceptable ang corrective actions. Yung pinakadulo dun if the school won’t comply, then the school has to be closed down. But if the compliance reports submitted by institution is acceptable, then it doesn’t proceed to something like that, that’s the normal process,” Evidente explained.
On the other hand, EMSA is a European Agency that focuses on reducing the risk of maritime accidents and maritime pollution from ships and the loss of human lives at sea by helping enforce standards of the European Union.
“This means that EMSA takes the responsibility of checking if manpower deployed to the vessels of its Member countries are qualified to meet these standards. Since JBLFMU is one of the leading maritime schools in the Philippines. That provides manpower to its vessels, it regularly audits the university as part of its measures in ensuring the safety of its vessels,” Sebastian reiterated.
According to Evidente, the audits are normal to JBLFMU, emphasizing that the school had been complying with the two international standards since then.
“It’s a normal thing and JBLFMU passed before. Every time something new comes out, the institution is required to update itself, to do corrective actions, buy more equipment and facilities and we have been compliant with that. We have always been open to audits. We even welcome audits because audits are opportunities for improvement,” he said.
Sebastian said JBLFMU will not reach its current status as the top maritime school in the country if not for the audits that the university regularly subjects itself to.
“We would not reach where we are now were if not for these external audits that we willingly submit to. It is my belief that the audits are instrumental in ensuring that our vision to be a globally leading institution in providing high-quality training and education is achieved,” he said.
JBFLMU is now PACUCUOA Level IV accredited, the highest accreditation for a maritime educational institution, according to Sebastian.
Since then, JBFLMU has played a vital role in the shipping industry in the country and worldwide by producing thousands of graduates and board passers yearly.
“We have been producing thousands upon thousands of board passers, and graduates who have excelled and are already in the management of top shipping companies not only here but worldwide,” Evidente said.
JBFLMU is one of the major factors behind the success of Iloilo, he added.
“We’re very proud of the history and track record that we have. We have connections with shipping companies. We were able to fill more than a thousand cadets annually, imagine the economic impact. Everybody in Iloilo and the region the whole country knows that,” he said.
Hence, he assured that the students and parents alike should not worry as the university is committed to producing competent maritime professionals.
“We have no fear of any evaluation and audit or visits. We always address whatever findings there are. We are confident that we can surmount all the deficiencies that we have as we have been doing in these years. The university is doing its best to excel in maritime education by producing the best graduates,” Evidente noted.
