Fix Tagbilaran airport first before building a new one in Panglao town

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines  — The present condition of the city airport is in bad shape, said Bohol Provincial Board Member Godofreda Tirol in her privilege speech delivered during the recent session, as she moved for fast government action on this instead of working on the proposed New Bohol Airport project in Panglao town.

Tirol, chair of the tourism committee, warned of deteriorating services and facilities at the city airport, and this neglect may cause Bohol to lose its distinction as the prime tourist destination faster than what it has been promoting.

The provincial official urge officials concerned to act fast and set aside the proposed new airport, formerly called Panglao Bohol International Airport project, which "until now has not taken off."

She said: "We cannot afford to just stand by and wait for the (Panglao airport) while the city airport deteriorates. If and when Panglao airport will be finished a few years from now, the image of Bohol might already suffer substantial damage and we will lose the flight, the tight competition against other travel destinations."

The city airport's pre-departure area is considered crowded and "standing room, no available seats, no proper ventilation, no air-conditioning system but electric fans," Tirol told the PB as she narrated her findings when she visited the facility to see the situation herself.

Tirol described the airport as having a "cramped, hot, inconvenient" passengers-area where passengers are restless, some in "standing room" because of no available seats, while others are sweating with only an electric fan.

She quoted one passenger in a wheelchair as saying, "I am almost suffocating." Even if the airport manager's office upstairs would be utilized as departure area, this would not be enough because its only "window-type" air-conditioners are good only for an office and not suited for bigger areas.

Tirol has recommended for the installation of at least five-ton air-conditioning units priced at P100,000 each for the check-in and pre-departure areas as suggested by airport manager Solis while "waiting" for the P30 million fund needed for the airport's expansion and development.

This concern over the city airport's sad state was then referred to the PB's committee of the whole but even that of the air-conditioning item alone may not be immediately realized due to budgetary situation.

Vice Gov. Concepcion Lim commented: "We are now in the process of making the budget for 2012 so it would be included because that's a big amount of money" needed to buy the air-con units.

Tirol said it looked ironic for stakeholders to promote Bohol for its ecological tourism to the world and yet neglect the needs of the city airport, which has been called as the "gateway" to the province.

"Unfortunately, there is a grave misconception on how we operate the tourism industry in our province," Tirol lamented in her speech, adding that the quality of our airport is contrary to the quality of "our attractions."

She said that Bohol may be successful in promotion and marketing of its tourism industry but somehow the drawback would be "not fixing first our most basic tourism support facility, the airport."

Tirol said denying tourists of the "simplest and most basic comforts of travel" is a "failure," which will "initiate a domino effect that will crush the efforts in building up Bohol's name and image." (FREEMAN)