Privatization not the right prescription for PH airport woes - Hontiveros ​

Privatization of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other airports in the country would not be a “silver bullet” that can solve the deteriorating conditions of these facilities, Senator Risa Hontiveros said on Sunday, May 7.
 
The government, Hontiveros said, should instead focus on better management and greater accountability of local airports.
 
“Privatization is not the correct prescription to solve the worsening problems on service within our airports. This is an issue of performance and accountability,” the senator said in a statement.
 
“The service at NAIA will not improve even if the private sector runs it, if there is no reform when it comes to the management system of NAIA and other airports in the country,” she stressed. 
 
Several Cabinet officials and lawmakers have already expressed their support for the privatization of NAIA operations in the wake of recent power outages that occurred within the nation’s main international gateway, and as a result of the disruptions, dozens of flights were cancelled, affecting thousands of local and foreign travelers.
 
But the lawmaker warned that a private sector takeover of public utilities like airports does not automatically guarantee better services for the public. 
 
She said this is evidenced by the country’s experience with its privately operated water, electricity and rail systems. 
 
"Let's take a close look at what is happening in our water, power and rail utilities, which have been privatized for decades. Those utilities bring expensive charges and repeated problems to the people," she pointed out. 
 
Hontiveros also noted that majority of the best airports in the world - particularly Hamad International Airport, Tokyo’s Haneda International Airport, Seoul’s Incheon International Airport, Paris’ Charles de Gaulle, Istanbul Airport - are state-owned.
 
“There are plenty of good practices in airport operations for us to emulate, if the government is indeed serious about fixing our airports,” Hontiveros said.
 
“Instead of rushing towards privatization and deregulation, Malacañang and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and its attached agencies should work towards ensuring clear lines of accountability and responsibility in relation to airport operations,” she said.
 
Hontiveros said she supports House Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto and other officials’ call for an immediate technical system audit of NAIA operations so the government can proactively identify and address weaknesses in the system.
 
An audit, she said, would help lawmakers identify the projects that should be prioritized and funded to improve the services at the NAIA.
 
She said insisting on privatizing NAIA would also create a “dangerous and reckless” mindset in government which is predisposed towards allowing private corporations to takeover public services instead of demanding better performance from public officials. 
 
“Sometimes, there is no alternative to demanding that our public officials actually do their jobs well. This is one of those cases. We should demand more from our public officials and not encourage further complacency in the bureaucracy by bringing in the private sector every time our public officials are unable or unwilling to do their jobs,” she stressed.