MABALACAT CITY -- Scrap Sangley Point airport plan and develop Clark International Airport (CRK) and Lipa airport.
This was the call of businessman Ruperto Cruz, owner of the Grand Palazzo Royale and Royal Golf and Country Club and leader of the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM), which has been advocating for the immediate and full development of Clark airport.
Cruz asked the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), headed by Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, to forget about developing a new airport in Cavite province to replace the congested Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
The DOTC and Abaya, should instead focus on the development of CRK and another airport in Lipa City, Batangas province.
CRK and Lipa airport will complement and decongest NAIA, said Cruz.
"DOTC is anti-progress and anti-tourism. There is a conspiracy to sabotage the development of Clark airport," Cruz said.
At the same time, Cruz urged Abaya to resign from his post because of the agency's "slow phase" development of Clark airport.
Cruz met Friday with Clark International Airport Corporation president Emigdio Tanjuatco III and echoed their call to the DOTC and President Benigno Aquino III to forget about the Sangley airport, which will take more than years to develop at a cost of P436 billion.
Abaya earlier stated that the government plans to start the development of new international airport in Cavite province within the last 18 months of President Aquino.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) was tapped by the government to make a study for a new international gateway.
After its completion, the JICA recommendation will be forwarded to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) for approval.
Abaya said JICA considered all possible sites and Sangley Point, which is only 20 minutes drive and 20 kilometers away from Metro Manila, fit all the criteria.
On Thursday, Tanjuatco has assured the public that the DOTC and the corporation are pushing for the development of Clark airport.
Tanjuatco issued the statement to allay perceptions that the government is neglecting the Clark airport.
"The truth is that we fully support the development of Clark Airport. In fact, the DOTC had already infused an initial P 1.2 Billion for the construction of our new Low Cost Carrier Passenger Terminal Building (LCC PTB)," he said.
"The fact that this project is up for bidding this year is proof that government is serious in developing Clark Airport," Tanjuatco added.
Clark Airport has its own catchment area in the northern regions of Luzon, while the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) services the southern portion, according to him.
He clarified that the two airports are not competing since their operations and expansion complement each other.
The new LCC PTB is designed to accommodate at least 15 million passengers annually at the price of P 7.2 Billion.
The DOTC tapped the services of Aeroports de Paris for the feasibility study not only of the terminal but also other facilities at the aviation complex.
Abaya clarified that while the proposed Sangley International Airport is still under study, government is focused on the aggressive development of both NAIA and Clark.
Tanjuatco earlier vowed to draw some three million passengers and more airlines to Clark Airport within the next two years.
Tanjuatco said he is continuously promoting CRK as a prime destination for international carriers. He is currently working towards convincing Emirates and Air Asia to return to the 2,367-hectare Clark Civil Aviation Complex.
CRK hosts carriers like Dragonair, Asiana Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Seair, Qatar Airways, Tigerair, Jin Air, and Air Asia Berhad.