Check and listen
A man who is willing to listen is a wise man. A man who acts after listening is a leader.
These are my thoughts after breaking bread with the new NAIA General Manager Jose Angel Honrado recently. The former Air Force official was apparently informed about an article I wrote where I complained of certain shortcomings of the NAIA Terminal 3.
To be honest, Honrado did not have to break bread or meet with me since most government officials and their PR people usually just send a reply or an email. In the case of the new GM, he apparently takes personal interest in such matters.
The thing that struck me about GM Honrado is that he is so low key that you might pass him by and not know that he was in charge of the entire NAIA complex. In fact, I had seen him two weeks before our dinner meeting when I emceed the opening of the new Caticlan-Boracay Airport and he did not strike me as the “typical” general or high-ranking government official. I did not know he was the GM.
He had a casual air to him and immediately stated that, if he learned something from the military, it was to listen and listen well. That certainly straightened my perception that military people are only good at one thing: giving orders.
When GM Honrado heard and read my column, his first act was to verify the accuracy of what I had written about and to find out why the situation was such. In the two weeks that followed, investigation and assessment and reports flowed to Honrado’s desk and only then did they set up the meeting.
Unlike other government apologists, Honrado was quite frank about the situation, but he did not dwell on the problem by making excuses and apologies. After a brief admission of certain shortcomings, Honrado quickly moved on to solutions and changes that will be forthcoming at the NAIA 3.
With a tinge of pride and excitement, Honrado shared current developments with Smart, Globe and PLDT that will immediately address the absence of work tables for passengers who need to recharge or go-online with their laptops.
In like manner, GM Honrado also addressed the very embarrassing and unprofessional practice of a local airline whose staff walks around terminal 3 calling out for passengers to start boarding like barkers at a jeepney stop. It seems that those people are often too lazy to walk back and forth to the paging counter so they simply head out to the coffee shops and bark for passengers.
All these of course have nothing to do with our column item, but the fact that plans and work are well on the way for the transfer of international airline operations from NAIA 1 to NAIA 3. This would instantly upgrade our image with international travellers and will lead to the full utilization of many areas of NAIA 3 that have remained unused for 10 years.
Honrado did caution us not to expect instant solutions and transfers because a lot of the original equipment of terminal 3 will have to be, or are being replaced because even if the equipment were supplied new, most of them were never used since they were installed.
Much of the air conditioning system, baggage carousels, or anything that is designed for movement and with moving parts are almost certain to be rusty or stuck up. Remember that no one could do anything, not even maintenance, because of the multiple court cases here and abroad contesting ownership and compensation for NAIA 3.
In the same way Philippine Airlines practically “owns” and operates NAIA 2, Honrado told us that NAIA 1 is currently being offered to another local airline so that they too would have their own dedicated area of operations.
In addition to this, Honrado shared that companies and private aircraft operating in the General Aviation area have been advised that they will all be relocated outside Metro Manila within two to three years.
As someone who inherited hectares of headaches, Honrado deserves our patience and understanding. But he will also need the support of Malacañang if he is to be “The Man In Charge”.
At the moment, the Manila International Airport Authority or MIAA is subdivided between various agencies and functions, each having an exclusive zone of operation and control. Among these are the Bureau of Immigration, Customs, Airport security, the PNP, and the Office for Transportation Security (OTS), which controls and determines who comes into the terminals.
At the end of the day, the NAIA is a “company” that sells “service” to the public. The bottom line in terms of NAIA’s goals is a satisfied customer. No matter how well the NAIA is managed, if the General Manager has no authority or is not the single authority, then no one can be held accountable for the quality of service, good or bad.
As for the OTS, I have long stated that this group needs to be revamped and overhauled. Airport sources have told me time and again, that we cannot expect any independent investigation of drug smuggling and anomalies at the NAIA for as long as outside law enforcement agencies cannot enter the premises without the OTS say so.
On the other hand, if large amounts of drugs get through the NAIA, only to be busted in China or the Middle East, then it goes without saying that the OTS has also failed in securing the facility.
We can all look forward to more changes in the NAIA, but the best change would be to have a General Manager who is the single authority — not just in title.
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