AT A GLANCE
Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan wants to know if regular maintenance checks are indeed being done at Ninoy Aquino International Airport, the country’s main gateway.
NAIAA party-list congressman who experienced a power outage at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) wants to know if regular maintenance checks are indeed being conducted at the airport.
This, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan took to task NAIA operator, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), during an inquiry Thursday, May 11, by the House Committee on Transportation.
The panel is conducting a motu propio investigation into the power outage that happened at the NAIA Terminal 3 last May 1, on Labor Day.
Yamsuan said it was regrettable that the agency appears to be insensitive to the welfare of thousands of airline passengers inconvenienced by the crippling power outage that occurred last May 1, a long weekend. At least 9,300 passengers were reported to have been affected.
A similar power outage hit the country's main gateway last Jan. 1, where 65,000 passengers were affected.
“Meron ba kayong maintenance schedule, especially para doon sa critical facilities? Per quarter ba ‘yan, monthly ba ‘yan, ano yung maintenance schedule ‘nyo diyan (Do you have a maintenance schedule, especially for the critical facilities? Is it done per quarter, monthly? What’s your maintenance schedule?)” Yamsuan asked MIAA Officer-in-Charge Bryan Co during the committee hearing.
"Kasi kung wala kayong plano, gaya ng nasabi ni Cong. (Rodante) Marcoleta at Cong. (Salvador) Pleyto, paano natin maa-assure na okay lahat ng ginagawa ‘nyo sa mga areas na dapat ninyong tingnan? (Because if you do not have a plan, how can you assure, like what Cong. Marcoleta and Cong. Pleyto, pointed out, that what you are doing is sufficient in the areas that you need to check?),” added Yamsuan.
Unlike the Jan. 1 outage, the May 1 outage reportedly only affected domestic flights.
Yamsuan, who was among those affected during the New Year's Day power shutdown, said he personally witnessed the sorry plight of thousands of passengers inconvenienced by the incident.
“Grabe ang nangyari sa mga kababayan natin na talagang sakto lang ang budget ng bakasyon nila. Nakakaawa sila doon sa airport, practically andoon sila, doon na natulog lahat (What happened to our countrymen whose budgets were just enough for their vacations was severely unfortunate. Their plight was pitiful. They were just there, they all just slept at the airport),” he said.
“I think that it’s crucial for you to really take serious thought on all the things that you need to see to find out the problems in your agency,” Yamsuan told Co.
Upon Yamsuan’s questioning, the panel learned from Co that MIAA officials were briefed by their predecessors on the problems facing NAIA.
Co said this was the reason why the current MIAA leadership has been initiating the procurement of vital facilities and systems since last year.
Co also informed the committee that the MIAA has a maintenance program in place and is currently conducting an audit on NAIA’s facilities to determine the best practices that should be put in place to ensure the airport’s seamless operation.
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