PROBLEMATIC. The Iloilo International Airport. The Infrastructure Development Committee (IDC) of the Regional Development Council (RDC) passed a resolution on Wednesday (Nov. 8, 2023) requesting the replacement of the top officials of the airport due to a “leadership crisis.” (PNA file photo)
ILOILO CITY – The Infrastructure Development Committee (IDC) of the Regional Development Council (RDC) is requesting the Office of the President to replace the officer-in-charge of the Iloilo International Airport and Area VI of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).
“The IDC sees a leadership crisis in the Iloilo Airport, hence a new, responsive, and more active management is needed to address the prevailing concern,” according to the resolution adopted by the committee during its fourth quarter meeting on Wednesday.
The resolution, signed by IDC co-chairpersons Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas and Iloilo Business Club Vice President Ma. Luisa Segovia did not indicate the names of the officials.
These officials, they said, failed to attend Wednesday’s meeting amid the calls of the council and stakeholders to update the body regarding the airport development.
“The development of the airport as the main gateway of Western Visayas is vital in the ongoing development efforts of the region, particularly to the recent feat of Iloilo City as the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Creative City of Gastronomy,” the resolution added.
The committee cited that several facilities and equipment at the airport need repair and improvement, including the non-working escalators, with its main escalator waiting for replacement of some parts, and chillers, where only two are working and the remaining two are 50 percent operational.
“The Iloilo International Airport, the fifth busiest airport in the Philippines in 2022, is not in good condition and cannot accommodate the increasing passenger and cargo traffic,” said the committee. (PNA)
