Kalibo International Airport – 50 Mega Pesos Terminal Fee vanished

Kalibo International Airport is missing 50 Million Pesos (USD 1 Million) from Terminal Fee collection. It seems that ticket (fee) collectors have put the money in their own pockets.

The INQUIRER reports that 11 contractual workers have been fired. And as usual in the Philippines they were listed with their full names in the newspaper. In other countries, they would be presumed innocent until a court has found them guilty. The newspaper explains that those involved in the scam collected discarded terminal fee tickets and reissued these to passengers and pocketed the money. A CAAP audit team confirmed the scam involving the recycling of used terminal fee tickets.

The irregularities were uncovered only early this year by an internal audit team which reviews the finances of all the 41 airports in the country. At least PHP 10 million in collections are unaccounted for from January to February this year alone. From October 2015 up to now, more than PHP 50 million are missing.

 Photo courtesy of Ritchie Lopa The Kalibo International Airport Terminal Fee Ticket Inspection Counter

Kalibo International Airport
Some questions – some thoughts

• Why can’t the Philippines include the terminal fee in ALL tickets? In Manila it is done, in Cebu it’s halfway done, but all other airports still play with these silly little papers.
• Who is guilty? 1. The accused staff (Thou shalt not steal!) but 2. the lousy management and controlling.  After more than 6 months they discovered that money is missing.
• They say that KIA (Kalibo International Airport) is the Philippines’ fourth busiest international airport with 2,000 international passengers daily. Where do go the daily PHP 1.5 Million? Surely not into furniture!
• Looking at the picture above, we recommend that the Indians from Cebu (GMR-Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation) take over KIA and clean up as the did with great success in Cebu-Mactan.

[GARD]