By ALDWIN R. FAJARDO

Editor

(First of two parts)

Think of truly locally owned—and successful—businesses in the Northern Marianas and one company is certain to come into sight: Saipan Stevedore Company, an affiliate of the more successful and household name, Joeten Group of Companies.

But having a bankable parent company does not free Saipan Stevedore from the volatility of the Commonwealth economy—or the slowdown in activities at the island’s harbor, which has been the case in the past years because of the practically sluggish wholesale and retail sales, aggravated by the recently West Coast ports lockout.

A report from the Commonwealth Ports Authority indicated an 11-percent drop in the volume of incoming and outgoing cargo at the Saipan harbor in financial year 2002 compared with the year-ago tally, which mirrors a year-round slowdown in the level of activities at the island’s seaport.

House Rep. Oscar M. Babauta, in an interview, said that, as in any given economy, the number of service providers depend largely on the demand for such services. The cargo traffic at the Saipan seaport, he added, does not require additional stevedoring service providers at the harbor.

“Everybody can put up a stevedoring company but can we guarantee the success of each one of them? The current condition of the local economy and the level of activities at the seaport don’t call for it [additional service providers],” he added.

According to the CPA, cargo traffic at the Port of Saipan totaled 807,390 tons in FY2002. This figure represents a significant drop from the previous fiscal year’s 906,861 tons. Besides the practically low level of activities at the Saipan seaport, the volume of inbound and outbound cargoes has been shrinking in the past years.

On a monthly trend for the whole of FY2002, the ports authority reported a dramatic slowdown in the level of activities at the Port of Saipan since the beginning of the last fiscal year. Except for the 10 percent increase in the volume of outbound and inbound cargo traffic in February 2002 and the 3 percent rise in October 2001, port-related activities at the Saipan Harbor posted negative growth.

“There is no logical sense to discuss stevedoring services or question the lack of it because we have enough, given the poor economic condition of the islands, as well as those of major economies in Asia such as Japan, and the United States,” lamented Sen. Pete P. Reyes.

Babauta and Reyes chorused in saying that the CNMI government, which has instituted measures to protect and save businesses in the Northern Marianas, should be particularly careful about Saipan Stevedore, considering its being a 100 percent locally owned company and its unwavering commitment to providing job opportunities to the local workforce.

“It is an efficiently and effectively run local business, which is owned by indigenous businesspeople who invested hard-earned money to put up the company,” said Reyes.

Babauta echoed the senator’s sentiments, pointing out that Saipan Stevedore came into life when no one else saw the need for a terminal operator during the Northern Marianas’ Trust Territory years.

Saipan Stevedore was a brainchild of the late Jose (Joeten) C. Tenorio. The company was founded in 1963 by a group of businesspeople from Saipan, Tinian and Rota, when the Trust Territory Government recognized the need for improvements to the Saipan seaport.

Also in 1963, Joeten, who envisioned and recognized the potential for an independent stevedoring and terminal company, had funds from Saipan Shipping Company—which, along with the TT public works and procurement and supply departments, previously handled terminal operations at the island’s harbor—appropriated to activate limited terminal service at the Commercial Port of Saipan.

In February 1964, the TT High Commissioner approved Saipan Stevedore’s charter, making it the first—and only—privately and locally owned and managed terminal operator and stevedoring company in the Northern Marianas. (With reports from Edith G. Alejandro)