GOV’T VS PRIVATE | After flights came to a standstill on Jan. 1, government officials think operations of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport will be better if privatized. (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — The proposal of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to privatize the operations of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) was actually long overdue, Sen. Grace Poe said on Monday.
In fact, Poe said, it was one of the recommendations of the Senate public services committee when she led an investigation of the technical glitch that crippled the country’s flight operations and froze the entire Philippine airspace on Jan. 1.
The New Year’s Day airport fiasco resulted in delays and cancellations of almost 400 flights to and from Naia, and affected nearly 65,000 passengers.
“The privatization of Naia is a proposal not only whose time has come, but is also well past its due,” Poe told reporters.
“It’s time to start fixing our country’s premier gateway. Filipinos and foreign travelers deserve a better airport,” she said.
“We could have averted the glitches that messed up the flight schedules and inconvenienced thousands of travelers had the modernization of the airport’s air traffic control and operations been undertaken years ago,” she added.
Public bidding
Sen. Francis Escudero also supported DOTr’s proposal, pointing out that private entities were generally better at providing services than government agencies.
But he reminded transportation officials that all interested parties should be allowed to submit their proposal to operate the country’s main gateway in a public bidding as mandated by the government procurement law.
“What will be handled by the private sector and what will remain under government control must, however, be clear cut,” Escudero said.
“Further, they should do so in compliance with the applicable procurement procedures in accordance with law and relevant regulations,” he said.
Poe agreed with Escudero as she stressed that the private group that would be tapped to manage and operate Naia should be able to comply with its “commitment to improve air services in the country.”
“The government should require an accomplishment timeline, performance matrix and penalties for any default,” Poe said.
According to the DOTr, a recent study on the planned Naia rehabilitation showed that the government needs to let a private concessionaire “invest in modern air traffic control equipment, rehabilitate runways and taxiways, and improve existing terminal facilities.”
To operate for 15 years
It said the private entity would be authorized to operate the international airport for 15 years to allow it to recover its investments.
The proposal had been submitted to the National Economic and Development Authority for approval.
Poe, whose committee oversees the grant of congressional franchises to public utilities, said the DOTr should make use of the expansion and improvement of Mactan-Cebu International Airport as a model in pursuing the privatization of Naia.
“This could be a template for the modernization of the Naia operations,” she said.