Four survivors of the sunken vessel MV Trisha Kerstin 3 owned by Aleson Shipping sought the help of Chairperson of the Committee on Public Services Senator Raffy Tulfo through Senator Robin Padilla to expose the alleged negligence and deplorable condition of the sunken vessel.
In a meeting conducted recently, Nur Hussein Sali, Atty. Aquino Sajili, Muzhaheeda Ismi, and another survivor who chose not to publicly disclose their identity personally shared their experiences to Tulfo. They were also joined by Raimona Romoros, the wife of missing passenger Judge Alberto Romoros.
According to Nur, shortly after the vessel departed, he already felt that it was heavy and overloaded, considering that he saw around seven wing vans, along with motorcycles and private vehicles, crammed into the cargo bay despite the vessel having a capacity for only five large trucks.
“There were passengers standing along the sides of the ship, who were likely not listed in the passenger manifest or official list of passengers.”
Nur shared how he also observed that although all bunk beds were already fully occupied, there were still passengers standing along the sides of the ship, who were likely not listed in the passenger manifest or official list of passengers.
Aquino, for his part, shared that since his childhood, it was common practice for tickets to be sold even after the ship had already departed. As a result, many passengers were allegedly not included in the official manifest. Some passengers allegedly were also forced to buy more expensive tickets from scalpers, as tickets at the official ticket booth were often already sold out.
Nur further revealed that the facilities of MV Trisha Kirsten 3 were already in a dilapidated condition, particularly the restrooms, whose walls could easily collapse, as well as stairways that were heavily rusted. This was corroborated by Muzhaheeda, who added that the ship was infested with bed bugs and cockroaches.
“Some passengers wearing life vests failed to stay afloat and sank.”
Nur also recounted that when the vessel began to tilt, not a single crew member assisted the passengers. Instead, the passengers had to help one another put on life vests which were not only insufficient in number but were also substandard, as they were allegedly made only of styrofoam. Some passengers wearing life vests reportedly failed to stay afloat and sank.
According to Aquino, MV Trisha Kirsten 3 previously operated on the Tawi-Tawi route, but passengers there were already aware that the vessel was heavily rusted and no longer wanted to board it. As a result, Aleson Shipping allegedly transferred the ship’s route to Jolo, Sulu, marking its first-ever voyage on that route.
After hearing these revelations, Tulfo announced that his Committee on Public Services is set to conduct a hearing about this issue.
“At sa pagkakataong ito, mas marami pang kabulukan ang mabubunyag at hindi pwedeng walang mananagot,” the legislator stressed.
