CIAC heeds Duterte’s call, defers rentals of locators

CLARK FREEPORT -- The Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC), announced that it is deferring the collection of lease rentals of its locators in direct response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s appeal during his recent State of the Nation Address for government agencies to assist the business sector adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We currently have about 45 locators and we told them that they don’t have to right now pay their rentals for the months of April to June this year, and they also do not need to worry about paying any interests or penalties on delayed payments,” CIAC President Aaron Aquino said on July 28.

According to Aquino, the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ) were imposed inside Clark Freeport Zone from April to June.

“We hope this policy will serve as a springboard for businesses here at the aviation complex to promptly recover from the sudden business disruption and income loss caused by the pandemic,” Aquino added.

CIAC’s newest policy to grant assistance to its locators affected by the Covid-19 pandemic comes in the wake of Duterte’s call to lawmakers to finalize the Bayanihan II Act, a recent measure to finance government-initiated programs to help businesses, employees and marginalized members of society to cope with the impact of the pandemic.

“It was no less than President Duterte who reminded bigger establishments―in our case, the CIAC as the government-owned corporation―to give assistance to stakeholders on rentals, or a form of an extension in the period of payments,” he added.

In addition to the deferred collection of lease rentals during the quarantine period, Aquino said CIAC locators are also given a 30-day grace period from the last due date of their rental payments or the date of the lifting of the ECQ, modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) and GCQ, “whichever is longer, without incurring interests.”

After the grace period, locators are then given the option of paying their unsettled accounts through a twelve-month installment scheme, he added.

“This means the amount of rentals accrued by locators during the ECQ, MECQ and GCQ can be equally amortized in twelve months following the end of the 30-day grace period, and again without interest or penalties,” Aquino clarified.

For outstanding accounts as of March 15, 2020 or “old unpaid accounts prior to the imposition of the ECQ,” Aquino noted CIAC shall grant a grace period for payment of 90 calendar days, adding that no interest or penalty shall be imposed from March 16 up to June 15.

The CIAC chief noted that these policies will be applied while awaiting an official guideline from the Department of Trade Industry on the request of both the Clark Development Corp. and the Bases Conversion Development Authority to allow the grant of full waiver on payment of lease rentals from April to June 2020.

The Clark Civil Aviation Complex managed by CIAC is home to the privately-run Clark International Airport, as well as the mixed-use business district Clark Global City and currently around 45 locators in cargo and aviation-related businesses.