Clark airport lobby group urges tax payment boycott

ANGELES CITY — An umbrella organization of business and militant groups in the province called yesterday for an indefinite tax payment boycott in this province until Malacañang carries out measures to make the Clark International Airport (CIA) operational, even initially as a domestic airport.

The Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM), led by businessman Ruperto Cruz, also urged President Arroyo to scrap alleged "lopsided and onerous" provisions in the contract which the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) signed with the Philippine International Air Terminals Corp. (Piatco) in 1997.

The contract bars the government from operating any new airport passenger terminal in Luzon until Piatco’s new passenger terminal, NAIA 3, now nearing completion at the old Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), has serviced 10 million passengers for each of three consecutive years.

The PGKM actively mobilized a huge number of local folk for participation in EDSA 2 which toppled the Estrada administration.

"One of the reasons Pampanga folk joined EDSA 2 was because of the perception that former President Estrada ignored Clark airport to accommodate his ‘cronies’ in the NAIA 3 project. We had hoped that President Arroyo would finally listen to our plea since she is a Capampangan, but she seems to be ignoring us, too," Cruz told reporters.

Cruz said the PGKM will hold meetings with various groups in Pampanga for the tax boycott campaign as well as mass actions at the Clark special economic zone.