Central Luzon business sector asks President to issue open skies fiat for Clark

MANILA, Philippines - The Central Luzon business community on Wednesday asked Malacañang to revive an order allowing unlimited flights in a major airport north of Manila. In a press conference yesterday, stakeholders presented a manifesto calling for the immediate issuance of Executive Order (EO) 500-B that will open the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in Clarkfield, Pampanga to foreign carriers. They said EO 500-B will allow foreign carriers to operate in a certain area that is not served by local carriers. Should there be local carriers, operations should be guided by bilateral air agreements. Mario Trinidad P. Lazatin, Metro Angeles Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Inc. director, said allowing more flights in DMIA will help sustain business growth in the region. In a separate interview, Pampanga Rep. Carmelo F. Lazatin (1st district) said foreign carriers should be allowed in Clark to accommodate increasing passenger traffic. "Of course, the idea is to liberalize the other airports as well; but for the meantime, let us focus on Clark and implement the open skies [policy] there. We will see a tenfold increase in investments [as a result of this]," he added. Carmen Tayag McTavish, Greater Clark Visitors Bureau chairman, said an open skies policy will increase tourist arrivals in DMIA. She noted that revenues of tourism establishments in the northern end of Angeles City have ballooned to $400,000 from $100,000 per night prior to DMIA’s development. The President issued EO 500 in January 2006. The fiat allowed foreign airlines fifth freedom or the right to ferry passengers and cargo from its main hub through the Philippines en route to a final destination. But EO 500 was recalled a year later after local carriers Philippine Airlines (PAL) and rival budget carrier Cebu Pacific opposed the order. It was replaced by EO 500-A which removed the fifth freedom right. EO 500-B reportedly seeks to restore the privilege. Tan-led PAL and Gokongwei-led Cebu Pacific have claimed that a unilateral open skies policy is disadvantageous to the economy. "We cannot just give away our rights without benefits from the other side. When we negotiate, we should negotiate from the point strength," said Rolando G. Estabillo, PAL vice-president for corporate communications. "Since she [President] hasn’t sign [EO 500-B] the President must really be looking at every side, and hopefully she would see the disadvantages of the unilateral open skies," he added. "As we give away our entitlements and open Clark completely, we should be given the same right [in other destinations]," said Candice A. Iyog, Cebu Pacific vice-president for marketing and product. Cebu Pacific has not started operating in DMIA pending the approval of entitlements from Taiwan, Thailand and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Executive Secretary Eduardo R. Ermita confirmed that the open skies policy has yet to be signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who is still studying its merits. "As far as I am concerned, there is no such thing as (Executive Order 500-B). It is still being discussed. We are getting inputs and feedback [from stakeholders]. The President is not [yet] convinced," he told reporters yesterday in a Malacañang briefing. Asked if the President will no longer sign the order, Mr. Ermita said, "I cannot say. Only the President can say that." He said Malacañang has not set a time line in signing the order. Last February, Mrs. Arroyo told businessmen during the Philippine Economic Forum that the government is finalizing the fiat on open skies, which will further liberalize the aviation industry. She said she has asked Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Sergio F. Apostol to draft an EO to make it easier for foreign airlines to enter even if they are not nominated by countries with existing air deals with the Philippines. In an interview, Mr. Apostol said he has submitted the draft order to the President, but he declined to provide a copy of the draft order saying he can only do so once the President signs it. — Marian Grace S. Ramos and Alexis Douglas B. Romero, BusinessWorld