MIAA seeks Pasay LGU help over security concerns in abandoned hotel

MANILA, Philippines — The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) has asked the help of Pasay City’s local government unit to address the security concerns in an abandoned hotel that sits near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

In a statement on Tuesday, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said that MIAA officer-in-charge Bryan Andersen Co had written a letter to Pasay City Mayor Imelda Calixto-Rubiano about the Philippine Village Hotel (PVH), which has been abandoned for some time now.

According to Co’s letter, PVH’s abandoned state has made it susceptible to trespassing, raising the possibility of terrorists holing up in the building, near to sensitive areas like the airport.

“MIAA Officer-in-Charge Bryan Andersen Co expressed deep concern that the PVH’s abandoned state ‘has increasingly compromised the building’s security, making it susceptible to trespassing, vandalism, and other criminal activities…[including] the possibility of terrorist activities being planned or executed from within the structure’ which would jeopardize the operations of the airport complex,” DOTr said.

“Co requested that MIAA be allowed to secure the PVH area, not only from criminal elements, but also from natural and manmade disasters,” it added.

PVH, built during the time of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s father, former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr., sits within the Naia complex itself.  Created for tourism purposes, the now-abandoned hotel has been said to affect plans for the Terminal 2’s expansion.

READ: Gov’t mulls over Naia Terminal 2 expansion 

DOTr said there were two incidents where personnel sent to put out fires near the PVH were not allowed to enter, making the facility a hazard to airport safety.

“He (Co) cited two past incidents when MIAA personnel and equipment sent to put out fires in the PVH area were barred entry, clearly violating the Fire Code of the Philippines.  The first incident occurred on November 20, 2021, when MIAA firetrucks were denied entry to respond to a basement fire in PVH,” MIAA said.

“In response to a June 7, 2023 report, the MIAA fire brigade was allowed entry 15 minutes after their arrival, but only with the assistance of the Airport Police Department. He also appealed to Mayor Rubiano to conduct a comprehensive structural assessment on the hotel to determine its level of risk for structural failure, collapse, and damage which may warrant its demolition,” MIAA added.

According to DOTr, the recent earthquake felt in Metro Manila last June 15 highlights the need for an engineering assessment of the building, since the facility is near the “passenger terminal and aircraft movement areas”.

“Although it has not been operational since 2001, the dilapidated hotel structure still stands within the land of MIAA which was transferred from Nayong Pilipino Foundation by virtue of EO 58 issued last September 29, 2011,” DOTr said.

“This poses what MIAA describes as grave threats that could be mitigated with the help of the Pasay City LGU to “ensure the safety and security of the airport complex, all those associated with its operations, and the general public,” it added. With reports from Kirsten Segui, trainee

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JPV