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By Joey Aguilar, Correspondent
ANGELES CITY: Pinoy Gumising Ka
Movement (PGKM) Chairman Ruperto Cruz on Tuesday called for the
ouster of Levy P. Laus as president/chief executive officer of the
Clark Development Corp. (CDC).
“We want Laus out of Clark,”
Cruz said. “He is not serving the true interest of the people and
he is not working to complement the development of the surrounding
communities, instead, the Clark ecozone is competing with the LGUs.”
He also said that many local
traders, Clark investors and residents share this sentiment and have
expressed dismay over the performance of Laus who allegedly has
“consistently proven himself to be against the development of
Clark as an airport-driven investment hub.”
The PGKM has long been in the
forefront of a campaign for the full development of the Clark
airport for international passenger aviation.
Reports reaching Cruz revealed
that Laus allegedly “lobbied” against a Chinese investment plan
for the expansion and development of the Diosdado Macapagal
International Airport complex. The CDC board due to the strong
opposition of Laus allegedly turned down the multibillion
investment. It was learned that Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC)
Chairman Nestor S. Mangio worked on the prospective investment that
would eventually turn DMIA into a premier airport in the country.
Reacting to the PGKM move, Angelo
“Sonny” Lopez, head of the CDC’s Public Relations Department,
said a change in the leadership of the state-run Clark Development
Corp. would do more harm than good.
He said that “in its 14-year
existence, the CDC witnessed eight presidents handling the
corporation: Antonio Henson, Romeo David, Rufo Colayco, Serge
Naguiat, Rogelio Singson, Emmanuel Angeles, Antonio Ng, and Laus.”
“We are sending the wrong
signal to the investors,” Lopez said referring to the frequent
change in CDC leadership.
Lopez noted that many CDC
employees are discouraged by the frequent change of CDC presidents.
“In fact, many workers of the corporation feel demoralized every
time there is a leadership change,” Lopez said.
“Barely two years as CDC
president, no one can accuse Laus of sleeping on his job neither of
committing any corruption,” Lopez furthered.
During his term, Laus was among
those who worked for the declaration of Clark’s 4,400-hectare main
zone into a free port.
He said “this development has
boosted investor confidence in Clark and employment generation
soared with more than 50,000 workers during Laus’ term.
His term also saw the entry of
Texas Instruments and the expansion of companies such as Yokohama
Tire, Cyber City, L&K Industries, Nannox, and Fontana.
Clark’s tourism potential is at
its peak. Currently, investments poured in by Korean companies alone
account for various tourism-related projects amounting to more than
$50 million.
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