AIRPORT SECURITY. Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez (center) meets with Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista (right) and Office of Transportation Security officials at the Speaker's Office on Monday (March 7, 2023). They agreed on the implementation of various measures to stop corrupt practices of airport screening personnel in all airports of the country. Romualdez was accompanied by House Committee on Appropriations chair and Ako Bicol Party List Representative Zaldy Co (left). (Photo courtesy of Office of Speaker Romualdez)
MANILA – The Office of Transportation Security (OTS) under the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has committed to implement stronger measures to protect tourists and travelers from corrupt and abusive government personnel in all airports in the country, according to Speaker Martin Romualdez on Tuesday.
Romualdez made the announcement following a meeting late Monday afternoon with DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista, OTS Administrator Undersecretary Ma. O Ranada Aplasca, Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Cesar Chiong, House Committee on Appropriations chair and Ako Bicol Party-list Representative Elizaldy Co, and other transportation officials at the House of Representatives.
In a news release, Romualdez expressed during the meeting his disappointment over recent “embarrassing and alarming” incidents at the airport, including one involving OTS personnel caught stealing from a Thai tourist.
“We cannot let this embarrassing incident fester and continue to discourage tourists from visiting our very beautiful country. But the OTS has recognized that there is indeed a problem and that it needs to be addressed at the soonest possible time,” Romualdez said.
He said among the measures agreed upon during the meeting was the assignment of select personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to accompany airport screening personnel on duty to provide another layer of safeguard.
The OTS, he said, has proposed the use of body cameras to monitor in real-time the activities of on-duty airport security personnel, as well as immigration officers.
With around 1,200 OTS workers in various airports in the country working in three shifts, the OTS alone would need around 500 body cameras to equip the on-duty personnel.
“The OTS also agreed to punish erring personnel and to put in place appropriate measures to stop and discourage illegal behavior of their staff. They recognized its existence and they decided to do something about it,” Romualdez said.
The OTS also sought the re-implementation of the protocol that prohibits their personnel from carrying cellphones, bags or jackets while on duty, and requires uniforms with no pockets.
Romualdez said the DOTr and the OTS also proposed the installation of additional e-gates in the airports to minimize personal interaction of security personnel with tourists and other travelers.
The DOTr and the OTS officials said they would submit to Romualdez the specific plans for the corrective measures they would undertake to address the problem.
Romualdez said attracting tourists is a priority by the government, especially now that the country is recovering from the impacts of the pandemic
“I hope this would somehow cushion any backlash from that embarrassing incident, and that tourists will still choose to visit the Philippines and not be discouraged by the acts of erring personnel. We will monitor closely the corrective actions of the DOTr and the OTS to ensure all travelers in and out of our country get the honest and efficient service that they deserve,” he said. (PNA)
