Press Release
January 18, 2008

ROXAS: CONCRETE STEPS NEEDED TO REVERSE RP AVIATION DOWNGRADE
SACKING ATO HEAD NOT ENOUGH

Senator Mar Roxas said other than the dismissal of the ATO head, more definite steps should be taken in order to reverse the United States' Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) downgrade of the Philippine aviation industry considering its repercussions on the travel, airline and tourism industries.

"Sacking the officer-in-charge of the Air Transportation Office (ATO) is a start, but it is not enough. The problem lies deeper than that. We need to know how long this has been a problem, and why the government had failed to prevent this downgrade," Roxas, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Trade and Commerce, said.

"In fact, we even need Danilo Dimagiba to tell us what went wrong, what he did and could not do, and how decisions were made or indefinitely postponed. His dismissal from service should have been a result of a clear and transparent post-mortem process that would result in lessons learned and a time-bound roadmap to obtain an FAA upgrade," he said, adding that he will request the appropriate Senate committees to invite Dimagiba to the hearing.

Roxas also welcomed the statement of Transportation Secretary Leandro Mendoza, now acting concurrently as ATO chief, that his office will extend full cooperation to the Senate inquiry.

"I am glad to hear that Sec. Mendoza is willing to attend the Senate hearing and discuss the circumstances leading to the FAA downgrade. This is a critical issue that affects all Filipinos worldwide. Aside from examining what went wrong, we also need to discuss how to cushion the effects of the downgrade, among them the potential loss in revenues for private airlines and concurrent decline in investments and tourism," Roxas said.

Incessant finger-pointing will not solve the problem, the senator said, but a slow and incoherent response on the requirements set forth by the US FAA would further exacerbate the problem and may cause irreparable harm to the country's image abroad. "Government needs to exercise enormous political will to resolve this problem. The repercussions are too great, and the damage to the country's image is very serious," the trade and commerce committee chair said.

Roxas noted that late last year, the government lobbied for the passage for the proposed Civil Aviation Authority, as if it was a "magic pill" against the threat of a downgrade by the FAA.

The Liberal Party President noted how the government had pushed for the immediate passage of a bill to create a stronger agency to be called the Civil Aviation Authority, as if it was a "magic pill" against the threat of a downgrade by the FAA. Still, despite the bill passing on 3rd reading in both Houses before Session went on a holiday recess, the downgrade was still levied.

"It is not only the US that will label our airlines as unsafe and unorganized. Other countries will take note of the FAA's advisory and act accordingly," he added.

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