Shameless finger-pointing was identified as the main reason for former Department of Transportation officials to be dragged into the New Year air traffic control mess that shut down the country’s airports due to a busted circuit breaker.
Former transportation secretary Art Tugade fended off allegations that P13 billion meant for the critical Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance Systems for Air Traffic Management was diverted.
“Nothing was diverted because the CNS/ATM project is funded by a loan. That means that the loan went through a process that was supervised by the Japan International Cooperation Agency,” Tugade said.
“There’s a process when the payment will be released. Were the funds released to the DOTr? No, the funds were released to contractors,” Tugade added.
Former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said it would have been easy for the current officials to check if their excuses will hold by just reviewing the yearly budget schedules.
“I remember in the previous administration, I was one of those who attended the inauguration of the CNS/ATM that included the installation of 10 radars that Secretary Tugade worked hard to secure at that time,” Roque noted.
Roque recalled that a P10 billion budget was earmarked for seven radars to add to the three already in place.
That funding, according to the now legal adviser of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. came way back from the administration of the late Benigno Aquino III and it took six years to be implemented which fell under the term of Secretary Tugade.
“So the problem can’t be about the lack of equipment or the system being outdated since I was there when these were inaugurated,” Roque added.
“Those accusing Secretary Tugade of irregularity should have just reviewed the yearly budget from 2016 to 2022 that are published and detailed through the line items.”
By reviewing the yearly allocations, Roque said critics will be disappointed to learn that their allegation of diversion of funds has no basis.
“The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines has been given at that time a budget of not more than P200 million a year but there is no P13 billion that can be found in it,” Roque continued.
“So if there is no P13 billion in the budget, how can it possibly be diverted?”
Moreover, the so-called cosmetic improvement of P13 billion is too much. “There is no beautification project that costs as much,” Roque indicated.
In the aftermath of the airport foul-up, former DoTr officials were alleged to have transferred the funding for a backup system to a project that will improve the surroundings of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Roque said buck-passing should have been avoided since CAAP must assume responsibility for some 56,000 Filipino airline passenger and their families who were affected by the mishap.
The effort to evade accountability for the blunder that will cost the country’s image and may affect the tourism trade should have been avoided and instead, concrete solutions crafted.
Those who hold the rein determine where the carriage goes.