Sen. Ralph Recto. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto on Thursday urged the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and other government authorities to lead the crackdown on the alleged 鈥淢aleta Gang鈥� syndicate victimizing travelers at the country鈥檚 premier airport.
鈥淚t took a foreign VIP to lodge a complaint before authorities finally took action against a continuing crime routinely posted by its victims, our OFWs, in social media,鈥� Recto said in a statement.
The senator called the attention of the law enforcers following the arrest of four baggage handlers at the Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) for allegedly stealing the jewelry of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu鈥檚 wife on Wednesday.
Recto also urged other 鈥渘on-NAIA based agencies鈥� to join the probe, saying that 鈥渋ntelligence fund鈥� should be used if needed.
鈥淗indi na pwede na taga-NAIA lang, tulad ng NAIA police (It should not be just the people in NAIA like the NAIA police). You have to bring in outside investigators,鈥� he said. 鈥淜ung kailangang gamitan ito ng intelligence fund (If it necessitates the use of intelligence fund), it will be good money worth spending.鈥�
鈥淲hen you steal from OFWs, who are returning from long and low-paying hard labor abroad, then you are an enemy of the state,鈥� Recto added.
鈥楤ad press for tourism鈥�
Recto said tourism efforts were also negated by the 鈥渂ad press鈥� the country鈥檚 main gateway was getting.
鈥溾�橸ang Maleta Gang sa NAIA ang negative effect niyan sa turismo ay tulad din ng damage na ginawa ng Maute group (The Maleta Gang at NAIA gets the same negative effect in our tourism, just like the damage brought by Maute group),鈥� he said.
鈥淥ne of the worst airports na nga in terms of passenger facilities and traffic congestion, tapos enveloped pa in other controversies,鈥� Recto said.
Despite the country鈥檚 top tourist spots, Recto also lamented that the controversies surrounding NAIA were causing 鈥渟tigma.鈥�
鈥淢aganda nga beaches natin, smiling nga tayo (Our beaches are beautiful, we are always smiling) but we鈥檙e having a hard time living down the stigma that our airport is either they plant a bullet in your bag or they divest it of its contents,鈥� he said.
The senator also pointed out that money should not be a problem in transforming NAIA鈥檚 image into an honest institution, once 鈥渁 few bad eggs working there鈥� are fired.
鈥淚n 2014, government was already collecting P9.3 billion from NAIA passengers and airlines, netting P5.25 billion that year,鈥� Recto said. 鈥淪a ganitong kita, ano ba naman ang gastos para sa dagdag na CCTV at pulis sa baggage routes (With this kind of income, what does hinder them from installing additional CCTV and assigning police at baggage routes)?鈥�
Recto said a third of NAIA鈥檚 P9.3 billion gross income came from the P550 international terminal fee and the P200 domestic terminal fee paid by passengers, which reached P3.5 billion in 2014.
鈥淭apos kung Pinoy na turista ka na paalis, may travel tax ka na babayaran, only to discover upon arrival at your destination na mayroon din palang nangolekta ng gamit mo (And when you are a Filipino tourist flying out, you鈥檒l be paying travel tax only to discover upon arrival at your destination that someone also collected your belongings),鈥� he lamented.
Travel tax rates cost around P2,700 for a first class passenger, P1,620 for an economy seat and P300 for an OFW dependent, according to Recto.
鈥淣agbabayad ka pa ng airport security fee, tapos ang gamit mo hindi secure. So para saan pa ang binayaran mo para sa iyong seguridad at ng iyong gamit (You have paid the security fee and yet your belongings are not secured. So, what鈥檚 the purpose of that payment intended to secure your things)?鈥� he said.
Recto also noted that in 2014, P598 million in Airport Security Fees was collected from NAIA users and remitted to the national Treasury. JPV