The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Screeners at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) are being generally pilloried as “extortionists,” as cases of bullet-planting continue to hit the news.
The most recent victims were an elderly couple.
While a “no-touch policy” for screeners has been in effect since September 2015, bullet-planting cases have continued on and off. And, as before, the Naia screeners remained the “bad guys.”
As expected, the screeners are denying the insinuations , if not outright accusations, by the public in general that the “tanim-bala” cases were just part of the modus operandi of crooks like them at the country’s premier airport to extort money from incoming or outgoing passengers. One group of screeners pleaded with the public to reserve its judgment on the screeners involved in the cases to at least wait until they are proved guilty.
“Screeners play an important role in the airport —we make sure passengers and their luggage are safe from threats. It’s sad to say that despite our efforts, people criticize us,” Naia screener Edgar Anas said in a press conference.
Anas is president of workers association called National Employees Association for Transportation Security (Neats) of the Office for Transportation Security (OTS).
All screeners work under the OTS, which is an attached agency of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC).
Neats Vice President Jocelyn Mirabueno admitted there were, indeed, some bad eggs in the OTS. But she said a greater majority continued to provide honest work for the sake of their families.
She said that if there, indeed, were bad eggs and they’re proved to be so, based on investigation, they are inevitably suspended. But until there is proof of wrongdoing on the part of the suspects, she said, the public should not generalize. She added that their group and does not condone the misdeeds of fellow screeners.
The Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) also urged the public not to be hasty in passing judgment on screeners, who are employed at the airport, after all, to ensure the safety and convenience of passengers.
“Let us allow proper procedures and investigation led by the Avesgroup (Aviation Security Group) to take place and to clarify everyone on the issue,” Miaa Spokesman David de Castro said. “A no-touch policy has already been implemented to protect the rights of both passengers and screeners. Meanwhile, the Miaa has increased security and surveillance efforts in light of the issue.”
At present, there are 1,945 screeners/OTS personnel who work in various airports nationwide.
Data from the OTS showed 19 screeners/OTS personnel have been suspended, another 19 formally charged, 36 are “under study” and 65 that have been dismissed due to various reasons, including bullet-planting cases.
Last February, the DOTC announced that screeners would soon be transferred from the OTS to the Miaa.
Transportation Secretary Joseph Abaya said the move would consolidate the screeners to a single authority, which means they would be personnel for the Miaa instead of the OTS.
OTS Administrator Rolando Recomono earlier expressed hope that cases of bullet-planting do not lower the screeners’ morale.
“I don’t want them to suffer from low morale because this will eventually affect their performance,” Recomono said, noting their role in maintaining high-level alert and safety in airports.
As of November 2015 data from the OTS, there were a total of 1,394 cases of ammunition-interception cases recorded in 20 of the country’s airports. Of these, 1,212 cases were recorded in Naia Terminals 1 to 4.
Naia Terminals 1 to 4 recorded 139 cases as of November 2015, in which people were caught with live ammunition.
Since last year, government agencies concerned have revised security procedures to prevent more cases of bullet-planting in all of the country’s airports. PNA