AMID REPORTS of flight delays and cancellations, President Rodrigo R. Duterte on Monday made a surprise visit at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA)-Terminal 2, according to Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S. Panelo.

In a press briefing, Mr. Panelo said the President, during his visit, “apologized for the inconvenience to the public because of the delays.”

He added, “I understand the head of NAIA committed to the President and they are doing something about the problems.”

In a separate press conference, Senator-elect Christopher Lawrence T. Go said the President got angry over the situation

“Nagalit s‘ya (He got angry),” said the former Presidential aide, noting that the delays were apparently due to lightning strike alert.

“Mamaya pag-uusapan sa Gabinete kung ano pa pwedeng gawin (It will be discussed later in the Cabinet what can be done, [like] alternative airports tulad ng (like) Clark and Sangley,” he added.

In another statement, the Palace said, “A Philippine Airlines manager and a NAIA-Terminal 2 airport duty manager briefed the President on the flight woes and explained actions being undertaken to normalize the situation.”

Mr. Duterte, the statement said, “discussed how flight aberrations could be minimized and what actions could be employed by the government, particularly the Department of Transportation, to solve the problem in the long term.”

The President also “talked to the passengers apologizing to them on the inconvenience caused by the disruptions. The President vowed to come up with a remedy within a month.” — Arjay L. Balinbin

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