ANGELES CITY—Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) President and CEO Emigdio Tanjuatco III disclosed over the weekend that he is lobbying for the immediate construction of the P1.2-billion Low Cost Carrier Passenger Terminal Building (LCC-PTB) at the Clark International Airport (CIA).
Tanjuatco said he asked National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Director General Arsenio M. Balisacan during their meeting on January 5 to approve the plan for the LCC-PTB to pave the way for the bidding of the terminal “at least by March this year.” He added that the approval of the Neda is needed before the bidding process could start.
Tanjuatco was interviewed shortly after his meeting with Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM) Chairman Ruperto “Perto” Cruz at the latter’s residence here. The PGKM is pushing for the full development of the CIA for some 20 years.
Tanjuatco said the P1.2-billion funding for the LCC-PTB “is at the GAA [General Appropriations Act] and we must capitalize on this.” He added that “if the bidding pushes through in March, then the construction of the terminal will hopefully start by June.”
Cruz warned Tanjuatco that not just the PGKM but thousands of residents of North and Central Luzon will hold “wide protest actions” against the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) should its secretary, Joseph Emilio “Jun” Abaya, derail the construction of the LCC-PTB and other planned development for the CIA.
Cruz lambasted Abaya for pushing the proposed Sangley International Airport in Cavite.
Cruz said Sangley is only for Cavite, where Abaya used to be congressman of the province’s First District for three terms.
Cruz also assailed Abaya, who expressed surprise by the study made by the Aeroports de Paris.
“Aeroports de Paris designed a huge terminal that is beyond what we thought would be the actual demand. We don’t need it yet,” Abaya said in earlier published reports. The DOTC tapped the Aeroports de Paris for the feasibility study not only of the terminal but also other facilities at the Clark aviation complex.
Cruz said the “potential of Clark airport is its land area and ready infrastructure.” He added: “Why is the design study of Aeroports de Paris too big when we are thinking of not only the present demand but future development?”
Cruz said that residents of North and Central Luzon, about 25 million, are pinning their hopes on the Clark airport. He added that “it was said many times that most of the country’s overseas Filipino workers are from the our regions.”
“Sangley is too close to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport [Naia] in terms of air distance. It is not feasible to put up an airport there without compromising Naia. It would be better to put up an airport at the Fernando Air Base in Lipa City, Batangas, which could operate with Naia and Clark simultaneously,” Cruz said.
In a statement issued by the DOTC on January 8, Tanjuatco assured the public that the CIAC, as well as the DOTC, are pushing for the development of the CIA in Pampanga.
Abaya also clarified that while the proposed Sangley International Airport is still under study, the government is focused on the aggressive development of both Naia and Clark.
Tanjuatco earlier vowed to draw some 3 million passengers to Clark Airport within the next two years, as well as to attract more airlines. He continuously promotes it as a prime destination for international carriers.