UNDAS 2025: Authorities warn of ‘beinte pesos’ scam at port

Officials of Batangas Port on Thursday inspected the pier following a complaint of alleged additional P20 payment on top of the fees that must be legally paid by passengers.

In Tina Panganiban-Perez’s report in “24 Oras,” Batangas Port manager Aurora Mendoza, however, said that none of the passengers she asked at the port experienced the alleged scam.

“Bukod doon sa mga binabayad na talagang taripa, pagpasok, para makasakay ng barko, ayun lang ang dapat ang kanilang babayaran. Baka kako may mga instances na sila ay nasisingil ng extra, na nagpapanggap na mga empleyado ng port, ay hindi po totoo ‘yun, huwag silang magpapaloko sa mga ganung modus,” she said. 

(Aside from the official tariffs they pay upon entry to ride the vessel, that is all they should pay. Perhaps there are instances where they are charged extra by those pretending to be port employees, but that is not true, they should not be fooled by such modus.) 

More passengers are expected to flock to the port on Friday, October 31, which was declared a special non-working holiday leading up to All Saints Day on November 1. There are only a few passengers so far at the port as of Thursday noon, the report said. 

“Sa tingin ko, ito na yung ine-expect natin. Kasi bukas kasi ay holiday na tayo. Siguro nakatulong yung wellness break ng mga estudyante, as early as last week nagbiyahe na sila,” said Mendoza. 

(I think this is what we expect. Because tomorrow is already a holiday. Perhaps the students' wellness break helped as they traveled as early as last week.) 

According to Mendoza, there are estimated 70,000 passengers at the port from October 23 to 30.

The port management said that sea trips will remain normal even on November 1, adding that there will be no issues of overloading as the Philippine Coast Guard will monitor the situation.

But the Batangas Port manager admitted that there are shortage vessels to cater passengers. 

“Maliit naman kasi ang capacity ng mga barko dito compare sa mga passenger vessel sa ibang mga ports. And then ang isang nagiging problema ay yung pagbalik sa kabila. Let’s say, pagalis dito, matagal bago bumalik,” said Mendoza. 

(The capacity of the vessels here is small compared to the passenger vessels in other ports. And then one problem is the return trip from the other side. Let’s say, after they leave here, it takes a long time before they return.) 

She says the peak of travel is today and tomorrow but there seems to be more empty seats at the terminal than passengers.

Mendoza says this may be due to passengers traveling last weekend to take advantage of the Department of Education’s wellness break this week.

In fact, Mendoza says 11,000 passengers travelled through the Batangas Port last weekend.

To ensure a hassle-free journey, Mendoza advises passengers to book online and not to bring prohibited items.

Further, the Batangas Port management reminded passengers to avoid bringing prohibited items such as pointed and flammable objects. — Vince Angelo Ferreras/BM, GMA Integrated News