The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is looking at privatizing the operation and maintenance of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA 3) as the government’s way to generate income to pay the Philippine International Air Terminals Corp. (PIATCO) billions of just compensation for building the facility.

According to a government source, who declined to be identified for speaking on the “sensitive” issue, the DOTC is toying with the idea of bidding out the concession of the NAIA 3 to pay PIATCO P3 billion worth of just compensation without forcing government coffers to shell out taxpayers’ money.

It was recalled that even if the government already exercises right of ownership over NAIA 3 by virtue of a writ of possession, it is still compelled by the Supreme Court, in a December 2005 ruling, to compensate the investment of PIATCO, the consortium led by Philippine Airport and Ground Services Terminals Inc. and Fraport AG that built the airport under the build-operate-transfer scheme.

“Cognizant of our budgetary constraints, we would want that government will not have to fork out any amount for subsidies or capital outlay in opening NAIA 3. What we want to happen is for DOTC to bid out the operation, maintenance, and concession of commercial areas within the airport facility. Hopefully, whatever the government will get from that will be enough to amortize what is due of PIATCO as just compensation,” the source said.

But the same government source admitted that bidding out the concession remains a proposal since DOTC is still getting the opinion of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) on the legal aspect of the privatization vis-à-vis the pending compensation for PIATCO.

“This is still a proposal that we still can’t concretize the proposal or get it into motion unless we have a definitive stand on the legal issues apart from the financial considerations. Besides, this proposal is still subject to public policy, legal and financial considerations, which is why we need the legal inputs of the DOJ, the OSG, and the government’s private counsel,” he said.

The source admitted that despite the perseverance of DOTC Secretary Jose de Jesus in holding successive meetings to discuss the government’s options on the NAIA 3 issue, making it to the President’s Christmas deadline will also depend on the resolution of other departments’ concerns apart from DOTC’s, especially on the airport’s structural integrity.

“While he wants to settle the issues and open the airport by December, he is also bound to await the definitive stand of the government on issues apart from DOTC’s jurisdiction. But if DOTC is to be asked, what is important for the agency in its scheme of things is to open it up so that it can be utilized as soon as possible,” he added.

The DOTC’s plan in privatizing the operation and maintenance of NAIA 3 is similar to the agency’s plan for the government-owned Light Rail Transit and Metro Rail Transit, after buying it back from its private owners.

Agency officials said the DOTC will look for concessionaires that will manage the operation and maintenance of the railway systems, but the government will remain as the track owners.