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When the
Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3
opened its doors yesterday for eight domestic flights, I
could hear across the country sighs of relief and hope,
including my own. It’s been nearly a decade since the
project was launched, and six years since it was
mothballed in 2002 after the Supreme Court voided the
multibillion-peso contract for its construction because
of onerous provisions.
Billions
of pesos spent on its construction have been lying idle.
And alarmingly, the facility had begun to show some wear
and tear without servicing so much as a single flight or
a single passenger.
Caveats
were, of course, written all over yesterday’s opening of
the terminal. Operations at Naia 3 will stick to
domestic flights for some six months to even a year.
Operations will be partial initially, with only about 20
percent of the facility to be used. There are still many
defects, some structural, that have to be fixed.
International carriers would have to be satisfied about
its readiness to service their needs. In short, it’s
still a stretch before the thing becomes fully
operational.
Even so,
I find Naia 3’s opening very cheering and definitely a
good thing for the country. Let me count the reasons.
First,
it will help relieve congestion at the Naia complex. The
domestic terminal can no longer cope with the demand for
flights and the surge of passenger traffic. It will help
to free up some capacity at Naia 1 (the old terminal
being used by international carriers and Cebu Pacific)
and Naia 2 (the Centennial Airport being used
exclusively by Philippine Airlines and Air Philippines).
Second,
it’s a great relief to see that Naia 3 is not going the
way of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant—so many billions
of public funds spent, and mothballed forever. For all
the grief and graft, the terminal, at least, will be put
into service. And if those placed in charge—led by task
force chief Mike Defensor—keep their eye on the ball,
the facility may yet become something we can be proud
of, instead of being ashamed of.
Third
and finally, Naia 3 will almost immediately point the
nation to the need to invest more in aviation
infrastructure. Before the facility could even open its
doors, it had already been overtaken by the country’s
aviation and tourism needs. Even when fully operational,
the entire Naia complex won’t be able to fill the demand
within just a few years. The fact that Naia has only one
runway ensures this.
With
Naia 3 finally operational, the nation can finally
seriously tackle the imperative of building a bigger and
better premier international gateway. And the best bet
is Clark, which has all the attributes of size and
suitability for a major international airport. The only
problem is the money, which will run into way, way more
than was spent on Naia 3.
As long
as Naia 3 was just an eyesore, no serious discussion or
debate could be done about building a really modern
international airport. The public was just too angry and
frustrated for any leader to champion the idea.
Populists would have a field day deriding modernizers.
But with
the facility finally running and hopefully satisfying
domestic and international passengers by 2009, serious
study and discussion can finally take place. When the
dust settles in that discussion, I believe good sense
and public purpose will vote affirmatively for a premier
international-
airport facility at Clark.
Some
will say, no doubt, that the discussion or debate is
better deferred to the next President and Congress in
2010. I think we will lose time once again if we do so.
The second decade of the 21st century is already
forecast to be a year of high growth for international
tourism. And the Philippines has been named one of the
emerging countries that will participate in the boom.
Regardless of the surge of fuel prices, which make
aviation fuel very pricey, tourist demand will continue
to grow. And we can only compete if we begin to build
the infrastructures now, including modern airports and
railways in key points of the country.
Two
factors make this commitment to the modernization of
infrastructure salutary in the remaining years of the
Arroyo administration.
First,
the government’s fiscal position is strong, and it will
get stronger. It is in position to marshal the capital
investments needed by modern facilities like a truly
modern international airport. The crushing burden of
high fuel and food prices will lift by next year.
Second,
the troubles encountered by the broadband and North Rail
projects paradoxically will improve the administrative
capacity to tackle infrastructure of great importance to
the nation. The lessons have been learned. Public
vigilance will be eagle-eyed. Grafters will be spotted.
For a change, technocrats could just focus on the task
that must be done.
I think
the time is propitious for infrastructure modernization
in the country. |
