Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 7) — Senator Risa Hontiveros has urged the government to improve the management of airports, saying privatization of the country’s gateways is not the answer to issues hounding them.
Hontiveros added that privatization is not a \”silver bullet.\”
“Hindi ‘silver bullet’ o tamang reseta ang privatization sa lumalalang problema ng palpak na serbisyo sa ating mga paliparan. This is an issue of performance and accountability — hindi gaganda ang serbisyo sa NAIA kahit pa pribadong sektor ang nagpapatakbo nito, kung wala namang reporma pagdating sa sistema ng pangangasiwa ng NAIA at ng iba pang paliparan sa bansa,” Hontiveros said in a statement on Sunday.
[Translation: Privatization is not a “silver bullet” that would fix the worsening problem of poor service in airports. This is an issue of performance and accountability — service at the NAIA will not improve even if run by the public sector, if there are no reforms in the system and management of NAIA and other airports in the country.]
Airport officials came under fire once more after a power outage hit Terminal 3 on May 1 that led to delayed and canceled flights. On Jan. 1, thousands of travelers were affected as well as a power outage and technical issues in traffic control affected airport operations.
After the January glitch, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said there were no plans to privatize “anything,” especially the country’s airports.
In her statement, Hontiveros urged the government to ensure \”clear lines of accountability and responsibility in relation to airport operations.\”
“Ayusin natin ang sistema ng pagpapatakbo ng NAIA, para hindi nauuwi sa turuan at kamot ng ulo ang pagtugon sa bawat isyu — mapa-power outage man, mahabang pila, o aksidente sa paliparan,” she said.
[Translation: Let us fix the management of NAIA so we don’t have to resort to finger-pointing or head-scratching when issues come up — whether it’s a power outage, long lines, or accidents at the airport.]
