BRUBAL
THRUST
By Louie
Logarta
The
influential International Air Transport Association (IATA), to the
dismay of possibly the majority of Kapampangans, has effectively lain
to rest all speculations that Clark International Airport is going to
be transformed into the country’s premier gateway.
Just to
give you an idea of how powerful it is that it can sway the thinking
of governments, IATA is the international industry trade group which
represents some 240 airlines comprising an estimated 85 percent of
air traffic worldwide.
In any case, that distinction still
rests on the shoulders of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport
(NAIA), a 32-year old facility which unfortunately is nearing the
point of obsolescence unless the government pumps in the billions
needed for modernization to bring it up to global standards.
Based
on the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness
Index, the Philippines comes out as No. 112 out of 130 countries
surveyed in terms of quality of air transport infrastructure.
According to the WEF index, the NAIA is not far from the level of
countries like Nepal, Mongolia and Bangladesh. Which only means that
it doesn’t even come close to the likes of Singapore (with its
world-famed Changi Airport), Hong Kong (with Chek Lap Kok Airport),
Bangkok, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur.
Furthermore, the US Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) International Aviation Safety
Assessment Program in 2008 placed the Philippines in its Category 2
list due to deficiencies noted by the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) in its Universal Safety Oversight Audit
Program.
Flag carriers from the Philippines have also been banned
in European Union countries since 2010 due to lack of confidence in
the safety oversight capabilities of the Philippines. In other words,
planes originating from Manila are seen as easily susceptible to
terrorists, which is why they aren’t welcome in the EU unless
drastic changes are effected in our security set-up.
During his
visit to the country last month, IATA chief executive officer Tony
Tyler minced no words in declaring that Malacañang would be making a
huge mistake if it were to substitute Clark for the NAIA which is
already operating at near-capacity.
“Clark is not a solution to
the long-term issue of capacity to service the market because it’s
too far away from Manila, and it’s in Manila where people want to
come for business, for tourism, among others. Something needs to be
done to provide adequate capacity in Manila, but Clark is not a
solution,” he was quoted as telling a news conference.
Tyler
said he would be urging President Aquino, during a scheduled courtesy
call in Malacañang, to prioritize the building of a hub airport for
Manila instead of splitting the traffic with Clark in its present
form as this wouldn’t be enough to put the Philippines on the same
playing field as its much more competitive neighbors.
Tyler’s
unflattering remarks about Clark were naturally lambasted by various
civic and business organizations groups around as they were seen to
dampen hopes of making it an engine of growth vital in kick-starting
the moribund business climate in Pampanga, A killjoy, they said he
was.
“(It’s) just another one of a long line of lackeys
of some vested interest groups opposed to the full development of our
country’s future premier gateway,” the non-government
organization calling itself ABE Kapampangan said in a statement
released to media.
“Tyler, who is a foreigner, has no
right to dictate upon President Noynoy Aquino on what should be our
country’s best airport development policy and strategy — a
critical issue that has tremendous impact on our overall social and
economic development.”
Unfortunately, affected Kapampangans may
actually be barking up the wrong tree. Rather than IATA’s Tyler,
all this anger and bile being spewed should instead be directed at
Aquino and his bright boys in Malacañang because they are the ones
responsible for making all the important choices.
Speaking to
newsmen immediately after he had anointed Fr. Ed Panlilio as the
Liberal Party’s official candidate for governor in the 2013
elections during a brief ceremony in San Fernando City Hall in
front of some 2,000 supporters the other week, we were told that
Aquino inadvertently betrayed the cards he was meaning to hold close
to his chest.
In some of his off-the-cuff remarks, P-Noy admitted
that the national government, as of this present time, really has no
plans of converting Clark airport into the country’s new
international gateway in place of the nearly-obsolete NAIA.
And
the most important factor, he said, in arriving at this decision is
that there is no high-speed train connection between Clark Freeport
and Metro Manila (nor would there be in the foreseeable future due to
the tremendous capital outlay required) which would make the commute
of the 80-kilometer distance between them feasible and palatable to
all concerned, especially business travelers and tourists.
Without
the high-speed train, Mr. Aquino said it would be inadvisable to
maintain Clark as the main international airport primarily because of
the existing horrible traffic conditions, making travel time to and
from Metro Manila highly unpredictable.
“Wherever did they get
the impression that the government was seemingly inclined to make
Clark as the new international gateway?” according to a
knowledgeable source in the National Economic Development
Authority.
The same source told us that something more desirable
and acceptable is the proposal aired recently by San Miguel Corp.
president Ramon Ang to put up within the next three years, together
with the group of taipan Lucio Tan, a P500-billion state-of-the-art
terminal facility to serve exclusively the fleet of Philippine
Airlines, as this would be much closer to Metro Manila than Clark.
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