wigstheone
Jul 16, 02, 9:36 pm
MANILA, Philippines -- For many visitors here, the Philippines' reputation for lawlessness and chaos begins at the arrival gate of the crumbling Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Long immigration lines, particularly for Filipinos returning from work overseas, make arriving a tedious chore, while aggressive taxi touts lurk just beyond the exit doors. Government tourism officials have long tried to make improvements to the airport's dismal service. One of Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon's first acts after taking office last year was to stop the airport's charging travelers a dollar a head for the pleasure of using a rickety luggage trolley.
But anyone holding out hope that the situation might improve with the opening of a new international airport that was planned under the government of former President Joseph Estrada in 1999 might be sorely disappointed.
The $600 million airport deal that Mr. Estrada agreed to with Manila's Cheng family and Germany's Fraport has run into an avalanche of legal complaints halfway through construction. It is supposed to open in December and serve as many as 13 million passengers a year. (The airport authority couldn't supply figures on the number of passengers passing through last year.)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB102683935965818560,00.html?mod=travel%5Fprima ry%5Fhs
Long immigration lines, particularly for Filipinos returning from work overseas, make arriving a tedious chore, while aggressive taxi touts lurk just beyond the exit doors. Government tourism officials have long tried to make improvements to the airport's dismal service. One of Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon's first acts after taking office last year was to stop the airport's charging travelers a dollar a head for the pleasure of using a rickety luggage trolley.
But anyone holding out hope that the situation might improve with the opening of a new international airport that was planned under the government of former President Joseph Estrada in 1999 might be sorely disappointed.
The $600 million airport deal that Mr. Estrada agreed to with Manila's Cheng family and Germany's Fraport has run into an avalanche of legal complaints halfway through construction. It is supposed to open in December and serve as many as 13 million passengers a year. (The airport authority couldn't supply figures on the number of passengers passing through last year.)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB102683935965818560,00.html?mod=travel%5Fprima ry%5Fhs