MikeLigalig.com

It seems to me that this is what Bobit S. Avila, a Cebu-based writer, is driving at in his article, There’s money for airports, but none for radars? After all, the downgrade proclamation by the US came just a few weeks after Arroyo gave the green light on the construction of Panglao international airport. This writer's point is that instead of boosting our facilities to improve safety--such as airplanes to check pilot competence and radar--the Air Transportation Office is yielding to political pressures to build more airports. Congressman Edgar Chatto, is he right? Or is it just Cebu turning a green-eyed monster at the attention Bohol is getting?

So why is the ATO’s budget not enough? I gathered that one of the reasons for the lack of money is that many congressmen are asking the ATO to build new airports in their respective districts and worse, these congressmen just don’t want ordinary airports, but want the tag “international” to go with them, even if no international flights come or go to their airports. Call it a status symbol if you wish or plain “humbug,” but at the end of the day, there are no monies for radars and other vital navigation equipment as these funds are used to build the new status symbol airports.

How did congressmen allow this situation to happen? Simply whenever the budget for the ATO comes around, these congressmen “whisper” to the ATO their “desire” to build new airports so that the ATO budget would move smoothly. How do we know this? Just look at all the plans for new airports in ATO’s planning department and you’ll know what I mean. But there’s more to the ATO’s troubles than just building airports.

http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Nation&p=49&type=2&sec=28&aid=2008012037



Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=8746.0

My gut feeling is that the Cebu media has rarely anything positive to say about Bohol, or ignores us altogether as though Bohol does not exist.

Although he did not name names, I am pretty sure the writer is referring to us when he said, "these congressmen just don’t want ordinary airports, but want the tag “international” to go with them, even if no international flights come or go to their airports."

However, I can't help but think he has a point if indeed, as a result of political horsetrading, we are allocating budget towards more airport construction at the expense of investment in maintenance and upgrade of safety standards of existing aviation facilities. It does not matter whether the budget comes from ATO or the Manila Airport Authority. Safety concerns are paramount.

As things stand, we are on the losing end. If the Philippines cannot recover its safety rating and scare foreign travelers, it is meaningless to build more airports.

Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=8746.0