Departing passengers line up at the immigration counters of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) prior to boarding their lights in this 2017 file photo. INQUIRER FILES
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Lawmakers grilled the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) over its proposal to contract out the maintenance of Ninoy Aquino International Airport鈥檚 (Naia) electrical operations.
Testifying at the House transportation committee hearing on the airport鈥檚 power outages, Miaa general manager Bryan Co said the outsourcing plan was the fastest solution to fix the power problems.
鈥淲e have a program, which is actually being finalized right now, for the outsourcing of the operations and maintenance of Naia鈥檚 high voltage equipment because we identified early on that we do not have the necessary competencies to manage the high voltage systems that鈥檚 why we opted to do a [terms of reference] so we can outsource the high voltage maintenance and operations of Naia terminal facilities,鈥� said Co in a mix of English and Filipino.
ACT Teachers party-list representative France Castro questioned the necessity of outsourcing, citing the critical nature of Naia鈥檚 voltage maintenance.
鈥淗indi natin pwede i-rely itong maintenance na ito sa outsourcing. Buti kung simpleng utilities lang yan, di ba? Pero ito po may kinalaman sa technical. Very technical po ito na dapat mag-hire tayo ng may plantilla position, qualified manpower para dito po. Bakit ang solusyon niyo agad ang pag-outsource?鈥� Castro asked.
(We cannot rely on outsourcing this maintenance. Better if they are just simple utilities, right? But this is connected to the highly technical, so we need to hire plantilla positions and qualified manpower. Why is your immediate solution to outsource?)
Co explained after weighing the options of outsourcing versus hiring skilled employees, the company had chosen to proceed with outsourcing for a quicker solution.
鈥淲e opt to explore both ways,鈥� said the Miaa official.
Antipolo City 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop pointed out that outsourcing maintenance to a third party may pose security issues.
鈥淲hy would you consider outsourcing it when in fact, yung agency na mahi-hire niyo na mag-outsource, pwede niya i-sabotage iyon?鈥� asked Acop.
Department of Transportation Usec. Robert Lim said the companies would undergo vetting based on eligibility and track records.
鈥淚t is just a stop-gap measure for the restoration of services as soon as possible,鈥� said Lim.
Headed by Acop, the inquiry is a continuation of a previous House probe into the power outage that Naia suffered.
Naia has experienced two outages twice for 2023 鈥� the first one during the holiday season on January 1, New Year鈥檚 Day and the second incident on May 1.
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