2 Clark agencies not merging, says BCDA head

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines — The Duterte administration has no plans of merging two corporations that have been turning a former US military air base into an economic free port in Pampanga province, according to a top official of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA).

“There are no discussions of a CDC and CIAC merger,” Vivencio Dizon, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the BCDA, said, referring to Clark Development Corp. and Clark International Airport Corp.

The two agencies handle the development of their areas in the 4,400-hectare Clark Freeport. Created in 1992 by Republic Act No. 7227, the BCDA oversees various agencies developing former US bases for civilian economic uses.

CDC began in 1993 as a subsidiary of the BCDA. CIAC was established in 1994 as a subsidiary of CDC and in 1996, under the BCDA. CDC and CIAC first merged in 2001, but CIAC got tossed between the BCDA and CDC four times.

Executive Order No. 14 put CIAC back to the BCDA and under the operational control of the Department of Transportation. Dizon also belied reports that the plan to merge the two bodies had triggered the resignation of some of its officials, including CDC president and CEO Noel Manankil.

—Tonette Orejas