INTERNATIONAL experts in the consultancy, aviation, and architectural industry lauded President Rodrigo Duterte’s support in developing the Clark International Airport (CRK) and making it an alternative to the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
John Boakes, vice-chairman of the Central Luzon Infrastructure Consultancy Inc. (CLICI), told SunStar Pampanga on Friday, April 21, that they are elated with the President’s all-out support for the development of CRK.
"Were so happy that President Duterte has given his full attention to Clark in Pampanga. We think it's long overdue. The fact that the President wants all of these plans done in his administration in the next five years, I think this expansion project will be done before the end of his term to benefit not only the people of Pampanga but people in Central and Northern Luzon," Boakes said.
Boakes said that it is not his first time to visit CRK, saying that he has worked in Clark for 10 years.
"I’ve worked here for a long time and have been here in the Philippines since 2009 and I actually came before that. But actually living here in the Philippines since 2009 and I’ve heard it before that Clark is here and this is the right time to do business in Clark. So I think you’re going to see an airport rapidly growing and that’s going to bring a lot of jobs to the area, particularly to Clark for the prosperity of the region, prosperity of ordinary people. Going to work in Clark in the future is going to grow as well. So I’m very excited to be part of the development of Clark and very excited to be doing business in the Philippines right now," he added.
"We felt very much welcome during the meeting with CIAC [Clark International Airport Corporation] President Alex Cauguiran. I was very impressed with the way we were all made to feel very comfortable at Clark Airport," Boakes said.
He said that CLICI brought two important visitors: the Korean Airport Corporation (HAC) that looks after 12 to 14 airports in Korea, and Haeahn Architecture, which is one of the 20 architectural companies in the world, that has done a lot of work in Korea, particularly in designing airports.
"They (KAC and Haeahn) come with lots of questions and it wasn’t at all difficult to ask them because Alex made them feel very welcome and they’ve been reassured that the problems they had and the worries they had were answered by Clark Airport officials. I think on behalf of CLICI, because we’re the organization which brought these visitors here, are very interested in getting the project and look after the development of Clark International Airport in the future. I think we all feel very comfortable now that we can manage the project in the future, and that Clark International Airport is an airport which has a potential to grow. We believe we got the right consortium to help it grow," Boakes said.
"Because there is no doubt about it that NAIA is over-crowded. The road around the airport is overcrowded, in the sky there are too many aircraft, too many air passengers going in and out of the NAIA Airport. So Clark inevitably has to grow, so what we’re looking for is to make Clark the second most important airport in the Philippines and an airport which really can decongest Manila. So, I’m very excited about what Clark Airport will be in the future," Boakes said.
Boakes said that he thinks this is the right time to do business in the Philippines, particularly in Clark since the President is very positive and “pro-Clark” and “pro-Pampanga.”
Haeahn Vice-Chairman Jookyo Chung said they are also excited with the development and expansion of CRK under the administration of President Duterte.
“For the past 30 years in the Philippines, a lot of projects were not really realized. But after President Duterte came into the office, a lot of projects have been announced or have been realized. Among those projects, this is one of the projects, the Clark International Airport expansion which I think will succeed under his administration," Chung said.
“Yes, we believe in the success of this project and we’ve seen the statistics and the future plans of the project. And we saw the numbers, how they will expand in many phases. I think that it is a little bit overwhelming but because of the strong leadership, at least the first phase will be very successful,” he added.
Chung said that they were invited by CLICI and CIAC to participate in the Clark Airport Extension Project which will soon be announced and that they came here to see the site and get more information.
"When you go to our country, we’re a tenth of your size. We are smaller but we have many airports, like 15 airports. And a lot of them are international airports and we see that it has been a very good influence to our economy, making a lot businesses come to our country. So in that sense, we think that creating a lot of international airports, of course in the Philippines, is very important for the Philippine economy and especially making Clark International Airport as a big international airport is very important aspect of that because of its location," he added.
Chung said that Haeahn architecture which is one of the top three architectural firms in Korea can contribute in making Clark airport “a very nice airport.”
"We have experienced in airport design, so we think we can contribute to a nice design for Clark International Airport," he said.
Commercial and Global Business of Korea Airport Corporation (KAC) Vice President for Aviation Soon Cheon Park, together with some of the board of directors of KAC, were also present during the meeting CIAC officials.
KAC was established in 1980 in Seoul, South Korea to carry out construction, checks and balances, management and operation of airports and to manage air transportation efficiently.
As an organization specializing in airport management, KAC manages and operates a total of 14 airports in Korea including Gimpo, Gimhae, Jeju, Daegu, Muan, Cheongju, and Yangyang international airport.
KAC also manages the Area Control Center, 10 VOR/TACs and Korea Civil Aviation Training Center. (SunStar Pampanga)