Editorial

This problem was first raised way back in 2014, when CAAP personnel sought the help of then senator Bam Aquino following the departure of five air traffic controllers for abroad. Documents submitted to Aquino by CAAP personnel at the time showed that apart from low pay, contractual schemes also bedeviled the air traffic officers. Of some 500 air traffic controllers recruited by CAAP from the Civil Aviation Training Center, Aquino

BABE ROMUALDEZ

ANALYSTS, experts and think tanks especially here in Washington, D.C. are carefully watching the developments in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region particularly because these have created a ripple effect impacting the future of the rest of the world. Undoubtedly, the far-reaching consequences of the Ukraine war are of major concern, especially coming on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There is absolutely no doubt that the continuing conflict between Russia and Ukraine is at the top of the list of global threats in 2023, an assessment that analysts, risk consultancy groups and the like collectively agree upon.

According to Eurasia Group founder Ian Bremmer, one of the top 10 global risks of 2023 is the possibility of Russia turning into “the world’s most dangerous rogue state” if cornered – thereby posing a threat to global security.

FIRST word

THE rationale for all the talk about the “first hundred days” of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. was to enable him to “hit the ground running,” and take effective control of the government as quickly as possible.

The early days, it was thought, constitute a window of opportunity for him to get a head start on his governance agenda.

With the President’s approval very high, and Congress open to new leadership, it was seen as a time of opportunity and change. 184 days, seventh month But now here we are in the year 2023.

The hundred-day timeline is just a memory; 184 days and six months have passed since BBM’s accession to office. And he is now into his seventh month in the presidency.

For all the hype and the travels, however, there is still no palpable sign that President Marcos has achieved effective control of the executive branch and the bureaucracy, or that he has made headway in advancing his promised programs.

Unsurprisingly, he is encountering his biggest problems said 195 were on job-order status. He noted that since the CAAP’s creation in 2008 through Republic Act 9497, no graduate of the CATC had become a regular employee.

CAAP officials said air traffic controllers undergo at least 18 months of training before being deployed to an air traffic management facility anywhere in the country for apprenticeship and capability rating. Upon completion of these requirements, however, the new air traffic controllers are drawn to jobs overseas with much higher pay.

Tamayo warned that the brain drain could mean the lack of personnel with sufficient skills to prevent a repeat of the airspace shutdown. The Governance Commission for GOCCs or GovernmentOwned and Controlled Corporations has said it is studying the CAAP’s request for higher salaries for air traffic con-trollers.

For many years now, brain drain has been a

Bremmer points to an escalation in Vladimir Putin’s nuclear saber rattling and also warns against “Kremlin-affiliated hackers” who could mount increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks on Western firms, governments and infrastructure – inflicting untold damage not only to Europe and the U.S., but beyond.

New York-based The Arkin Group also flagged geopolitical developments that leaders should watch out for in navigating this “new and evolving world order.” While Putin will persist in his assault, Ukraine will not back down and will continue to prevail (as seen in the major offensive launched at the start of the year that resulted in the death of an estimated 400 Russian soldiers).

Ironically, what Putin must have envisioned to be his crowning glory could turn out to be his undoing. The shockand-awe tactic at the start of the invasion in February last year was bogged down by the fact that Russian soldiers initially deployed were under-equipped and undertrained, and proved to be no match for Ukrainians who were not only ready to defend their country to the in the cabinet departments where he has desisted from appointing a cabinet secretary — specifically, defense, agriculture, health and communications.

In a government system where the cabinet secretary in a given area is envisioned to function as the president’s main adviser in that area, President Marcos has encountered the most headaches and uncertainties in the headless departments. Some of those whom he quickly named did not pass muster with the congressional Commission on Appointments, while others simply could not measure up to the job. His first executive secretary, lawyer Vic Rodriguez, faltered big-time as “the little president.” He had to be quickly replaced by former Supreme Court chief justice Lucas Bersamin.

At first, the problem was a hideous foul-up in a sugar importation order at the Department of Agriculture whose leadership BBM provisionally reserved for himself.

Thereafter, the problem shifted to an acute shortage of onions, which must be remedied by the government’s importation and marketing of the commodity.

Then attention turned to foreign relations, as our new president was showered with plenty of invitations from various countries and forums for him to visit, and he had to choose which one to problem not only in aviation but also in public health care, education and many industries. The Philippines has lost even weather forecasters to other countries. At this point, the country cannot hope to match salaries and benefits offered in places such as Dubai. The long-term solution is to raise the level of economic development so that Filipinos need not go abroad for meaningful employment. (Philstar.com)