The Falling of Industrial City of the South, Iligan City
This is the lonely part of a story in our city. We used to be called the Industrial City of the South and the city of The Majestic falls. Our city is the highly urbanized city and the biggest manufacturer of steel in our country and I guess many knows and heard about National Steel Corporation which is located in our city, Iligan City.
National Steel Corporation is the biggest manufacturing steel facility in Asia. The National Steel Corporation (NSC) is now abandoned and looted is now rotting in it's 145-hectares industrial complex in Iligan City. NSC used to employ as many as 4,200 Filipinos - into what is it today a big empty buildings with rats roaming around.
The former Pres. Fidel V. Ramos under it's government proclaimed the privatization policy. The National Steel Corporation was turned over to the Malaysian investor in year 1995. And subsequently the Indian investors took over in 2004. And everything follows it went to totally shutdown in 2009.
One of the source said that the former Pres. Fidel Ramos killed NSC Asia's biggest steel factory:
http://www.pesoreserve.com/2015/03/ramos-killed-nsc-asias-biggest-steel.html
"We made mistakes in awarding the NSC to the Indians" former Cong. Belmonte pointed out. That privatization was overseen by the former DTI Sec. Mar Roxas. And since privatization is being applied so are the other government own company was being sold and privatize.
NSC is one of the 11 industrial projects created by NDC, the government investment arm under the DTI, during the Marcos era.
During the bloom years of NSC employees live life of what they want and buy what they like. They never thinks that life is not always on top. They live like they own everything, some wasted the time given by them. Some abused the opportunity given, and some live a life of a sinner.
Since they think they can afford to have other woman, another families, and some... even in duties they played cards, gambling in works. Maybe they have been punished also of their wrong doings. But as what they say "being sorry is always in the end" and I guess they learn from their mistakes. Since, the good times end abruptly late in 1999.
Going back in time, thousands of Iliganons have lost their job. When NSC shutdown and so are the other companies who relied heavily on NSC also follows and brought Iligans economy into domed.
Because of this failed privatization in 1995 the flat steel subsector has a significant supply-chain gap, emerging from idle Hot Mill, Cold Mill and Tinplate Line and a diminished supply capacity of the shutdown Billet plant.
At NSC's peak time it supplied 62% flat steel demands supplied by Philippines (34 percent of hot-rolled products; 75% for cold-rolled products; 69% for Tinplates products). It used to export directly an average of 4,000 MT per month to China.
You can learn more here:
http://www.pesoreserve.com/2015/03/ramos-killed-nsc-asias-biggest-steel.html