Jitters Over PAL Demise

The Philippine Star

Thursday, September 24, 1998

The Southern Beat

By Rolly Espina

Strangely, just as prospects are that Philippine Airlines may close up tomorrow, the public sympathy wells for the airline firm.

Nopes, not just the businessmen and hotel operators. Even ticket sellers, cab drivers, vendors and restaurant employes as well as those of Manokan country express disgust over the turn of events that could bring down a revered institution.

Senator John Osmeña may have summed up public sentiment neatly — "never have we been without PAL in the last 50 years." And the impact? “When the airline is closed the whole country will go back to the Japanese times."

Local radio listeners and newspaper readers latched on to every hit of news about PAL and the slim chance of its survival post the announcement by Chairman Lucio Tan that management was throwing in the towel post gargantuan losses. Gloom gripped many. Even officials of the Colegio de San Agustin-Bacolod PTA Sunday blasted ALPAP and PALEA officials for bringing PAL down.

There were two encouraging news. Tan, who was here during the weekend, told local mediamen he welcomes a government takeover of the financially-strapped airline. “It's all right, whoever likes to take over, welcome,” he said. Even adding that he is prepared to give the airline for free if the government assumes its debts. That was Tan's reaction to Sen. Osmeña's statement that President Joseph Estrada will allow government to take over the airline.

Osmeña, who is man of the Senate finance committee said he will help source the funds to run PAL.

A tall order. Not only is PAL losing P40 million a day, Tan reportedly told the solon that PAL owes $95 billion with an amortization of $9 billion yearly.

Most of the local PAL station employes are wondering how they would earn a living when the airline firm shuts down in a monocrop economy, there’s not much chance of placement elsewhere with the same pay scale as they have been getting from the airline firm.

Tourism Secretary Gemma Cruz Araneta called the reported closure of PAL as disastrous to the tourism industry. Local hotels have been begging for customers. And with the competing airlines unable to handle the passenger volume PAL used to carry, the organizers of the Masskara Festival in October are getting nervous that prospective outside visitors, including from abroad, may dip.

Although the Orient Princess was owned by Sulpicio Lines and Negros Navigation Company (NENACO) has an enviable safety record post the Don Juan tragedy, the latest sea mishap may temporarily dampen enthusiasm for sea travel during the typhoon season.

But until tomorrow, many Negrenses have their fingers crossed that somehow PAL may still be around until the 21st Century. But one thing was evident — until the prospects of the airline are finally going down, a lot of people consider PAL a part of their life.