KEY Thread Best Posts in Thread: Porterage fee in Dumaguete port

I took the Ocean Jet to Siquijor Sunday and saw first hand what the OP was talking about. EVERY passenger that had any kind of bag was charged 70 pesos per bag. After entering the terminal and going thru the non functioning X-ray machine I was directed to the Ocean Jet check in desk (Ocean Jet is the only ferry that has such a desk inside the terminal). At the desk a man was seated as though he was the one working there, next to him was a long counter where bags were to be checked in for loading by the porters. All the porters seemed to be in a hurry and were scurrying about, not what I've seen anywhere at any time. NONE of the passengers was given a receipt for the portage fee.
The guy behind the counter, that everyone assumed was the clerk there moved out and another guy came in to issue the actual seat assignments.
I'm pretty sure the original guy was not even an employee of Ocean Jet
I emailed the customer service about this issue......as yet no response.

After paying more for ferry service to Siquijor which is supposedly faster the ferry was 25 minutes late leaving port.

I suggest everyone take another ferry, there are several to choose from.....especially if you have luggage.

 

The best thing you can do is publicize this information. Let people realize that many people here see tourist a wallets to be emptied, legally or illegally. Maybe even the Dumageute tourist bureau will realize the negative impact it has on the City of Dumaguete's tourist image. Why the Philippines spends so much money to promote the tourist business and then lets so many individual and groups scam people and create a poor image for the Philippines is beyond my thinking. Maybe they do not understand the power of the internet which they use to promote Dumaguete is also used by people to point out the problems to potential tourist.. Fixing the problems would be the best promotional effort the Philippines could make, but that is just my tourist type thinking here.

 

I don’t give to beggars. I do give 10 pesos to the guy who supposedly guides me as I back out of my parking space at Hypermart. Do I need this guy’s help? Hardly, but I don’t mind keeping small change to give to someone who is doing something to support himself or his family. It may be the only job he can get, and I think he deserves something for standing out there all day. If my grocery load is heavy, one of them usually rushes out to help. He gets 10 pesos also. I haven’t noticed any significant drop in my standard of living because of this, and I hope that maybe I’m helping someone in some small way to improve his.

 

If anyone is passing through the port, please let me know if this practice is continuing.

I see there are posts on this topic from about 4 or 5 years back, but unaware, and as a dumb tourist laden with luggage, we arrived at the pier and were set upon by the porters, some of whom had no uniform and no ID, and I shooed them away initially.
We make our way past screening, and the same guy, with no ID and wearing an NBA jersey and flip flops, is now directing us toward the OceanJet desk to the left.
We had two large pieces of luggage. After they get our bags behind the desk, and our tickets in hand, we are presented with a laminated bit of paper with

"TARIFF RATE FOR PORTERAGE FEE" of 110.88 pesos per piece of luggage. I protested this immediately, but the fee was eventually paid.
I made my way back outside where I found the PPA July 28, 2015 memorandum posted with a porterage rate of 27 pesos for a luggage of up to 25 kilos transported up to 200 meters. So I found out I was taken for 4x the official porterage fee.

Knowing the distance to the end of the pier was less than 200 meters, I went back in to complain. Eventually the porter offered me 100 pesos back. I asked to see his work ID, he said he had left it at home.
Now the money is not the main thing, but after the work it took to get that much back, I took it. I also watched my bags being loaded carefully, so they did not end up in the bay.

Someone up the chain is making a good living off this scam. I emailed the PPA when we got home, and this week got a response from
Sarah R Mijares, who apologized and said an investigation was in progress, blaming the porter.
The fraudulent fee is clearly a conspiracy between the porters and the OceanJet people, I am sure this doesn't go on without knowledge of and a cut going to the management.

 

Talking of guards who don't give a sh-t, Why Not is an good example. Anyone can park there. I've have gone there many times for food/drinks and had to park a couple of streets away, only to be sitting at the front and see people coming from Max's, Yellow cab, Honeycomb. etc., get into their car in the Why Not space and driver off. The guard should guide cars in and confirm the passengers and going into Why Not before they disappear, but since they are bone idle and only turn up when you back out for their tip, we have to suffer.

If it weren't for the fact that they reserve a space for the owner, he might give a sh-t too.

On the general subject of these parking attendants. I have a backup camera, so I don't need them, though I usually give them something anyway. Having said that, it really annoys me when you have already backed up most of the way and the guy comes running to make sure he still gets his tip, even though he didn't help. Funny how they aren't to be seen when you park but materialise out of nowhere when you back up.

 

Quite all right, happens to all of us. I would in fact tip the guys, then I basically ignored them, other than to not back over them. Many times they cost me an opportunity to get out into traffic because they were standing behind me.

It's hard to describe the situation I saw one day where the attendant motioned for the parked car they were guiding to back out while waving to a car on the street to stop which ignored him. To do the job properly, you have to stop the traffic on the street first, then get out there and stand in front of them so they don't change their mind then motion for the car you are guiding to back out. The only thing that prevented a collision was decent brakes and better than average reflexes. At that point it occurred to me that the parking attendant has no skin in the game, he is probably judgment proof if he gives bad directions although he is probably at fault for damage to two vehicles. I have also seen the guys with the ID squatting taking a break while I was backing out. Maybe he had already made enough money for the day and they have a strong union? Maybe he just didn't give a crap? I don't know. It's just one of those mysteries I will never know the answer to. saved me 5 peso though. I think you hit on a great idea though with them just being monitors against petty theft and scratched vehicles. If they would pick up a little trash at the same time I think it could be a partnership between the city works department and business to make it a regular job. I'd pay a little more in the store if I knew that nothing I bought at my last stop would get lifted from my jeep. I only lost about 500 php of stuff pilfered over time, still it's the principle of the thing.

 

Sorry, I went off on a rant.

Not your fault and I apologize. I have modified my previous answer to reflect that. Just been one of those days and not anything to do with you or anything you said...

I am logging off and going to bed. Again I apologize.

DaveD

 

Those guys supposedly helping you back out are dangerous. The guard at Cangs will actually stop traffic to let you out. There is a big difference.

 

Haha, my wife and family call them "atras boy". And yes, unless their presence was completely superfluous in the instance, they usually gave them 5 pesos or so.

 

Well we have gone from porters to parking 'attendants' to Jack's gardener so I suppose this forum is not as strict about staying on topic as some forums are so let me say a word in praise of the parking attendant I leave my motorcycle with when I go the the boulevard in the evening.

He knows my motorcycle. If I show up early and park it there before he arrives for work he still knows it. When I come back for it he sees me coming and has it pulled out and ready for me when I arrive. I doubt he would let anyone else take it or mess with it and that is sure worth 5 pesos to me as I have had a motorcycle stolen from under the eyes of the armed guard at Casablanca because he does not give a sh*t about who parks what where or who drives it away.