LONDON— In an ambush interview Tourism Secretary Mon Jimenez found himself receiving a lot of praise but at the same time forced to answer ticklish questions concerning the evident inability of another department, specifically the DOTC or Department of Transportation and Communications to keep pace with the demands for tourism infrastructure.
To his credit, Jimenez was forthright and transparent about what has been ongoing within the Cabinet cluster on tourism of the Executive branch. Jimenez shared that the DOT has continuously generated “Demand Pressure†on the DOTC because of increasing tourism arrivals, public pressure for improvement and increase of facilities etc.
Asked if there is a sense of urgency within Malacañang, Jimenez said: “There is tremendous pressure and tremendous urgency, in fact I think it’s fair to say that we have been very frank with each other more than once.†Asked if the President would possibly step in to lead in solving the problem, Jimenez replied:
“To put it more precisely; Terminal 3 and Terminal 1 WILL be finished next year — full stop. Does that sound like me, it sounds pretty much like the president if you ask me. So, I’m not saying the President threw some china at somebody, but he just made a decision and everyone is going to follow that…by November (2014) we have to be finished even with Terminal 1. It’s going to be dramatic, you’re going to see a lot of dust and the next complaint will be traffic around that area. But there’s no ifs, ands, or buts we will complete Terminal 3, which will allow us to move certain airlines to terminal 3 so we can accelerate the work on Terminal 1, And walang negotiation, Ganun lang yon(that’s how it will be).
Admittedly it probably took a little time to sink in, you see,for want of a milder term it’s very difficult to be transparent and honest because you actually move slower, so we had to make some hard, pragmatic decisions to move faster without breaking our own principles, and now we finally came to terms with a few things and now its going to move faster.â€
Let’s see if President Noynoy will be pinning medals in November 2014 or throwing china as well as the kitchen sink at whoever is left behind at the DOTC.
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In the meantime while friends may have been envious about “us†being able to go on a “familiarization†trip or what critics call “junkets,†these trips provide a lot of learning and perspective on what is and what isn’t. In response to the “junket†tag, I recently posted on my Facebook page:
“24 hours no sleep out of Manila, Jet lagged, freezing cold weather, chasing after deadlines and pending commitments, can’t afford prices, missing family sorely, and worrying about super typhoon about to hit Manila before we get back. PAL & San Miguel people working their butts off as well. Are we having fun yet?!!! I hope people will learn to appreciate what is involved to recover our slots into London. Pls support the national flag carrier.â€
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In my previous column I failed to mention a later discovery that Philippine Airlines did not simply apply for slots into Heathrow. Yes they got permission to fly in but PAL president Ramon Ang had to negotiate with other airlines who had unused or non-performing slots and subsequently bought five of those slots in order to eventually fly in 5 times a week. Those slots are clearly a major and expensive investment.
During our flight to London a number of the experienced travellers with us, observed that the flight was a little longer, 2 or 3 hours longer to be exact because we were flying via the Middle East and not directly over Russian air space. RSA graciously explained that Russia requires “new†airlines to fly a minimum of 30 days outside their airspace before entering into negotiations for access. This establishes the performance and track record of the applicant airline while indirectly providing airline executives a cost comparison between fuel used detouring Russian air space versus money saved paying Russia “toll fees†which results in shorter travelling time and fuel savings. According to Ramon Ang and DOT Secretary Mon Jimenez, talks with Russian authorities would soon be underway and the flying time from Manila to London will surely be one of the shortest and fastest on board PAL’s Boeing 777-300 Extended Range planes.
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It was certainly a surprise bumping into DOT Secretary Jimenez and his crew who were doing what they do best which was to attend and actively sell Tourism destinations in the Philippines at the World Trade Mart in London. Jimenez also invited several Congressmen to help them understand that tourism promotions and marketing at a global level is no longer done on a per “country†basis but per “destination.†It’s literally “kanya-kanya†in the sense that while one country may promote itself, several of the states/provinces or destinations within the country now promote themselves. In our case, the DOT promotes the Philippines, but at this year’s WTM, the Province of Albay has its own booth/display and promotional material. Because the competition for tourist dollars is so tough, provinces as well as Congressional districts should now consider selling themselves instead of waiting for “the guava fruit to fall off the tree.â€
At the WTM you learn a lot of seemingly little things that amount to much. Unlike in the past, there is now an international organization of “Backpackers†who collectively contribute millions of tourism dollars to the world economy and the DOT has extended an invitation for cooperation to them. Many foreign travellers for instance suggested that PAL should link with or join up with international chains such as Sky team, an alliance of 19 airlines regarding mileage points so people flying PAL can use their PAL Mabuhay points with airlines within the group operating in non-PAL sectors. They also suggested hook-ups with more Philippine banks and their credit card facilities that also give “points†that can be converted to mileage points.
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