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I am
starting to believe Air Philippines does not know how to
maintain its aircraft properly, to the inconvenience of
its passengers. I have been taking Air
Philippines
on my weekend trips to Iloilo, and for the last
half-dozen trips, I have been aghast by the fact that
the front lavatories of the aircraft I took have
unusable toilets. Thus, when a passenger is on one of
the front seats and wants to go to the comfort room, he
would have to travel a long way to the rear of the plane
where the “usable” lavatory is located. Also, he would
have to queue before he can relieve himself. Needless to
say, the long walk to the lavatory inconveniences a lot
of other passengers.
I was
told by the flight attendant that the front lavatory can
only be used while the plane is on the ground. I know a
lot of people have been complaining, but I see no relief
in sight from the Air Philippines management. I have
been assured that the plane’s management had been
advised of this inconvenience that the passengers have
to undergo, but after five more flights, the last one
just last Sunday, the same situation has remained. If
Air Philippines cannot maintain a comfort room for its
passengers, something a plane cannot do without, how
does it maintain the safety of its aircraft?
****
I wonder
why the traffic bright boys of Metro Manila closed the
road from the airport road toward Edsa. Heretofore, from
the airport one can turn left at the corner of the
gasoline station and conveniently reach Edsa, which can
take you all the way to Quezon City and beyond. I was surprised last Sunday to find the route closed,
forcing me to travel through Nichols and
Fort
Bonifacio in the Slex area to Valle Verde in Pasig City.
It meant traveling three times the distance than usual,
which is not only time-consuming but translates to more
gasoline wasted at a time when we are suffering from the
high cost of fuel, an additional burden to the driving
public. And I thought that we were all enjoined to
conserve fuel; this traffic scheme is the exact
opposite.
****
After
Thailand’s refusal to form a rice cartel and Thai Prime
Minister Samak’s recent visit to the country, the Thais
agreed, in case of a shortage, to sell us the staple on
a government-to-government agreement, at a friendly
price. The Arroyo administration has been shopping for
rice stocks to supply the projected lean months in order
to stave off another round of price jitters. Vietnam,
too, had already signed a deal to supply the country
with up to 1.5 million tons and had promised to deliver
at least a million tons at market prices this year.
Japan
is also expected to share its very substantial reserves
of rice imported from the United States. Like other
countries, the Philippines is seeking more imports from
rice-producing countries like Pakistan to maximize its
buffer stocks and stabilize prices. Supplies of rice
have become critical, particularly after a cyclone hit
Burma
and destroyed a vast acreage of rice lands. In the
meantime, the government is going all-out to ensure that
rice supplies continue to pour in. Rice is not only a
food item for our tables, it has become a political
issue.
****
The
attempt of Greenpeace to stop the shipment of coal to
the country may be a noble idea to the members of the
group, but I think the Coast Guard and the Navy should
have intervened because what the Greenpeace advocates
did violated our territorial waters. Whatever good
intentions imbued those bright people of Greenpeace,
should have been coupled by the knowledge that they were
violating our territorial sovereignty, and this is
simply unacceptable. Next time they do this, the Coast
Guard and our Navy should drive them away beyond
Philippine territorial seas so as not to interfere with
our legitimate economic undertakings. In the meantime,
what happened to lawful negotiations where men of
conscience can come to agree or disagree? Taking drastic
measures and sabotaging lawful economic activities
belong to the days of the Molotov cocktails. Let’s
reason together. |
