NSC workers urge SEC to dissolve evaluation body

Employees of National Steel Corp. (NSC) have asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to dissolve the evaluation committee and disqualify its chairman, Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas II, from the proceedings for their "discriminatory" stance against the workers.

In a petition filed at the SEC, the National Steel Labor Union – FFW (NASLU-FFW) through legal counsel Cortez & Associates Law Offices said the creation of the evaluation committee (EC) was discriminatory at the onset since the only parties invited to comprise it are the NSC shareholders and the creditor banks.

NASLU-FFW is a legitimate labor organization representing the displaced workers of NSC. As a collective whole, the group claims they are also creditors of NSC since the company owes them P750 million in unpaid wages.

The NSC-EC was formed after President Arroyo mandated the Department of Trade and Industry to look into the "NSC deadlock" and see what can be done voluntarily and consensually among the parties to break the impasse.

The steel firm’s plant facilities, located in Iligan City, closed down in November 1999 due to mounting losses and ballooning debts. Since the company filed for debt relief at the SEC, the Commission has since taken over the task of rehabilitating NSC but the failure of its majority owners, Malaysia’s Hottick Investments Ltd., to present an alternative rehabilitation program and a "white knight" to bail out the debt-saddled firm forced the SEC to proceed with the liquidation of its assets, appointing former SEC associate commissioner Danilo Concepcion as liquidator.

But NASLU-FFW claimed that since taking over the EC, Roxas has seriously undermined the powers and functions of the SEC. "Furthermore, by giving birth to the EC, he has created not only an awkward duplication of duties between liquidator and the EC, but has likewise blatantly usurped the functions of the liquidator," it added.

The labor union pointed out that while the EC performs a parallel function with the SEC, Roxas cannot, in any capacity, dictate the course of proceedings nor impose his will over the SEC. Roxas represents the DTI-attached agency National Development Co. which owns 12.5 percent of NSC.

NASLU-FFW said Roxas has intervened in the proposed leasehold for NSC facilities when he extended the May 23, 2001 deadline for the submission of lease proposals allegedly to favor the consortium led by Swiss-based Glencore.

The workers and even the Malaysian group have expressed their support to the bid of Allengoal Steel Corp. which was the first to offer a lease contract to NSC. Last May, Allengoal submitted an offer of P20.5-million monthly rental plus 40 percent of net income, a better offer than the only other proponent, Cathay Pacific Steel Corp. (Capasco) which offered P20 million or 50 percent of net income. – Conrado Diaz Jr.