Discipline abusive cab drivers, NAIA chief told

MANILA, Philippines - Senate President Franklin Drilon yesterday called on Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) officials to discipline taxi operators and drivers who overcharge passengers.

Drilon said MIAA general manager Angel Honrado should immediately address this issue because of the negative image it would bring to the country.

Tourists, overseas Filipino workers and local residents have reported getting charged excessive rates when they take airport-accredited vehicles.

They claimed they were approached by taxi agents after clearing immigration and customs and offered transportation service to their destination.

However, they end up paying higher rates because only airport-accredited taxis and similar vehicles are allowed to enter the arrival area of the airports to pick up passengers who have no pre-arranged transportation.

“I strongly urge (Honrado) to immediately do what needs to be done to put an end to these reports of abusive and unscrupulous drivers preying on both local and foreign travelers. We do not need to suffer from these crooks in our airports,” Drilon said.

He pointed out that foreigners gauged the effectiveness of government services through its airports.

The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) has been plagued with various problems and controversies that threaten to destroy the country’s reputation as a popular tourist destination.

Apart from the predatory practices of airport taxi drivers, airport authorities were also accused of taking part or tolerating tanim-bala (bullet planting), a scam aimed at extorting money from unsuspecting airline passengers.

Drilon believes that the key to solving the taxi problem is increasing the number of accredited metered taxis that service NAIA to make it commensurate to the daily number of arriving passengers.

Official MIAA data last year showed that NAIA has only around 1,677 accredited taxis and vehicles for rent. In comparison, the daily number of arriving passengers in 2014 was pegged at 9,536 in Terminal 1; 10,722 inTerminal 2; 21,293 in Terminal 3 and 4,949 in Terminal 4.

Drilon pointed out that the long queues for the limited metered taxis create room for “fixed-rate” taxis and rental cars who overcharge desperate commuters, such as the stories posted on social media by a group of commuters who refused a P1,800 “fixed rate” offer by one airport taxi operator. The passengers went instead to a metered taxi and paid only P320.

“There is absolutely no reason why the MIAA would tolerate these deficiencies which result in poor services to our passengers. If the present concessionaire could not provide the number of cabs our airport needs, let us find another one who can,” Drilon said.