Foreign businessmen have urged Congress to pass much-needed air legislations and other transport-related reforms contained in Senate Committee Report (CR) No. 39 following the Air Traffic Management System glitch at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) last January.
The Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) in a statement yesterday expressed support to CR No. 39 which recommended, among others the amendment of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) charter to strengthen CAAP as an agency and to decouple its conflicting functions as regulator, operator, and investigator; and the passage of bills creating the Philippine Transportation Safety Board (PTSB) and the Philippine Airports Authority to allow for more efficiency and transparency in the sector.
JFC said Senate and House bills have been filed and are pending in both chambers, with Senate Bill (SB) No. 1121 creating the PTSB sponsored for plenary approval by Sen. Grace Poe on March 7.
“ We urge relevant committees in both chambers to conduct public hearings on the bills pending at the committee level and for the Senate to commence deliberation on SB No. 1121 at the soonest possible time.
The incident at the NAIA, and the disruption it caused to air transportation throughout the country, is a strong reminder of the need to pass laws to institute structural reforms in the air transport sector,” JFC said.
The group also commended the timely issuance of the report and its recommendation of legislation that will align the Philippines with international standards of transportation safety and security.
The members of the JFC — with other industry associations such as the Safe Travel Alliance, Air Carriers Association of the Philippines, and the International Air Transport Association — have long advocated for these reforms and we are optimistic that with congressional, executive, and private sector support, we will finally see their enactment in the 19th Congress.
The JFC is composed of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines; Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines; Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines; European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines; Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines Inc.; Korean Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Inc. and the Philippine Association of Multinational Companies Regional Headquarters Inc. Irma Isip
