ANGELES CITY — The Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM) has urged Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) President-CEO EmigdioTanjuatco III to resign now if he intends to run for mayor of Tanay, Rizal in 2016.
Reliable sources said Tanjuatco has expressed his mayoralty aspirationbefore some close associates as well as confidantes at CIAC. But he will only resign from his CIAC post as soon as he files his certificate of candidacy in October.
PGKM Chair Ruperto Cruz said yesterday that Tanjuatco should resign now. “Why wait until October?” he asked. “This would even preclude any speculation or suspicion of any campaign fund raising for him and the Liberal Party in view of the reported P1.2 billion allocated for the low cost terminal.
If there indeed is such, of course.”“Whichever way one looks, it would be a disservice to the Clark airport, to the people of Central Luzon and to all stakeholders if he stayed seated on his CIAC desk even as he has cast his eye on the mayorship of Tanay,” Cruz said.
Cruz added that President Aquino will take the backlash in case Tanjuatco fails to deliver on the promises for the Clark International Airport (CIA). The PGKM has also assailed the pronouncements of Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya who expressed surprised 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. Our struggle, we don’t need it yet,” Abaya said in published reports.“The potential of Clark airport is its land area and ready infrastructure.
Why is the design study of Aeroports de Paris too big when we are thinking of not only the present demand but future development?” asked Cruz. “In the case of the airport in Sangley Point that is being pushed by Abaya, imagine we still have to go to Cavite just to fly out?” said Cruz.
The Kapampangans, Pangasinenses as well as the Ilocanos have all pinned their hopes on the Clark airport. It will be a total waste and disservice if nothing is made out of the promises for its immediate and full development,” Cruz said.
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, Cruz said. 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.
The proposed Sangley Point airport in Cavite is only for Cavitenos. It is obviously driven by vested interests and not a logical location, noted Cruz. Deng gastusan na king Cavite agawa na nala reng aliwang airport baka maka sobra yapa (The money they will spend for an airport in Cavite can be used to build the other airports and maybe there can even be surplus),” observed Cruz.
“Safety of air passengers should be paramount,”he added.The PGKM also expressed its support to the bill establishing the Clark Airport Authority which was sponsored by Rep. Joseller “Yeng”Guiao (1st district, Pampanga) in the House and Sen. Bam Aquino in the Senate.
FCruz said the PGKM supports the bill which would hopefully be signed by President Aquino. Cruz warned that failure of the President to sign the Clark airport authority into law would be “his shameful legacy to his cabalens.”
