Lawyer Tomas Riveral, OPASCOR’s chairman and CEO. | CDN Digital photo / Futch Anthony Inso
LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu – Lawyer Tomas Riveral said that he does not intend to vacate his post as the chairman and CEO of the Oriental Port and Allied Services Corporation (OPASCOR) because of the complaint filed by employees who are calling for his immediate resignation.
Riveral said that he will only do so if he no longer gets elected by the board of directors.
“I have no problem relinquishing my position basta proper process lang ta. Board man ang mo-elect sa aning corporate officers including sa chairman,” he said.
READ: Opascor workers, shareholders urge CEO Riveral to step down
He also denied allegations that they no longer hold elections to elect the chairman of the board, a position that he held since 2017.
Riveral said that they hold annual elections via “Viva Voce” or voice election. The practice was started in 1990 by the late OPASCOR chairperson and lawyer Democrito Mendoza Sr.
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“Tungod kay gitan-aw ni Atty. Mendoza nga kanang secret balloting is divisive kay lahi man gud ang sitwasyon sa among kompaniya. Ang among workers kay stockholders sab,” he explained.
Mismanagement
Earlier, over 200 OPASCOR workers, retirees, and shareholders have petitioned for the immediate resignation of Riveral and General Manager Florimae Velasco following two decades of alleged mismanagement and lack of accountability.
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On the contrary, Riveral said that he has already done so much for OPASCOR. He added that there are still so much that he can to do to further expand their operations.
In a press conference on Monday, September 30, Riveral said that with him around, OPASCOR will remain a key player in Cebu’s logistics and port services industry.
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Riveral recalled that their operations were badly hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition, they were faced with a tough competition when the port in Talisay City opened.
But under his leadership, he made sure that OPASCOR was able to survive.
“Nasulbad ang pandemic niadtong third quarter of 2022. Niabot na sab ang competition, duna nami kompetensiya dinhi sa Talisay, busa nangandam na sab mi nga maseguro namo ang survival sa OPASCOR despite sa competition,” Riveral said.
Port congestion
Before that, he also worked to help address the issue on port congestion that was also affecting their operations by building a finger port.
“In 2018, July, gitagaan mi og permit na sa CPA, permit to construct the finger port. After gitagaan mi, among gipaniguro ang funding,” he added.
In October 7, 2019, the finger port was completed which expanded their operations at the ports of Cebu City.
Riveral also recalled that before he became the OPASCOR president and CEO, they only operated using two second hand quay cranes, six second-hand rubber-tyred gantry cranes, a few second-hand prime movers, small-capacity forklifts, one reach stacker, and occupied an office building built on a 1,300 square meter lot.
Growth and Modernization
When he assumed the leadership of OPASCOR, he led the company’s growth and the modernization of its operation.
They started to acquire four brand-new quay cranes, 15 brand-new rubber-tyred gantry cranes, 32 most are brand new prime movers, 19 brand new forklifts, four brand new side lifters, five brand-new reach stackers, and 33 brand-new trailers, among others.
Riveral said that they also partnered with the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) for the construction a P250 million Cebu Bulk Grain Terminal located inside the Cebu International Port. The facility handled wheat, soya meal, soya beans, corn and other bulk grain cargoes.
Moreover, they also acquired real properties in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Talisay and in the municipalities of Bantayan, Madredijos, Consolacion, and Compostela in Cebu and in Misamis Oriental. Some of these real properties were leased out which creates and additional income for the company.