Tito’s men figures in tussle with Cebu airport personnel

CEBU CITY — An altercation between airport security personnel and members of an advance party of Vice President Teofisto "Tito" Guingona marred his visit to Cebu the other day.

The altercation was provoked when Guingona’s men allegedly tried to throw their weight around by initially refusing to comply with strict security measures at the Mactan Cebu International Airport.

Superintendent Elias Abad Jr., chief of the Regional Aviation Security Office, said the altercation did not escalate into violence and later said it was merely due to a miscommunication between his men and Guingona’s advance party.

Guingona was in Cebu the other day for the inauguration of the new regional office of the Department of Foreign Affairs, of which he is the concurrent secretary.

Guingona arrived a day after the incident but it was not clear if he had been apprised about it.

Abad said that by the time Guingona arrived Friday, the matter had already been settled when he met with a certain Jerry Go, apparently a member of the Vice President’s staff.

Abad said the advance party of Guingona arrived Thursday morning but returned to the airport at 4 p.m. to make arrangements for the Vice President’s arrival the next day.

When they approached the domestic check-in counter, non-uniformed security personnel assigned there asked them to deposit their handguns.

Guingona’s men apparently felt rebuffed and introduced themselves as the advance party of the Vice President and that they were at the airport to coordinate with airport officials for his arrival.

The security personnel, in an effort to appease the Vice President’s men, explained that they were merely trying to follow orders.

Members of the advance party, except for one, grudgingly handed their guns but then allegedly tried to rush the security personnel into giving them their receipts for the deposited weapons.

The lone member of the advance party who refused to hand his gun stayed behind. But another altercation erupted when, upon leaving, this member deliberately passed through the main entrance door instead of using the designated exit as if to taunt the security personnel. — Freeman News Service