NAC must tighten security at airport

THE armed robbery at the Jacksons Airport international terminal by criminal elements on the BSP Foreign Exchange undermines the credibility of the security provided by the National Airports Corporation (NAC) and the respective security contractors.
The response from NAC acting managing director Joseph Tupiri claiming that there were no reliable eye witnesses at the time of the incident and that BSP did not release any information of the robbery is misleading.
If this is so, can Tupiri guarantee that all travellers, workers and visitors are safe and nothing like this will happen again in the future?
As an airline employee I access both the domestic and international terminals every day during the course of my duty.
One thing that frightens me is the manner and quality in which security checks are conducted.
At the domestic terminal everybody who enters the terminal regardless of your purpose will have to provide airline tickets and for terminal workers you will have to provide your NAC Pass and IDs.
Then you will go through a full scan with your processions going through the scanner to make sure that prohibited items or dangerous goods are not being carried on.
On the contrary, there are no such checks done in the international terminal where everybody and anybody who wants to enter the terminal can do so at their own wish. The fear is we do not know what exactly is being carried into the terminal by the general public.
With these simple security assessments in mind the NAC should not come up with silly reasons to cover up on their weaknesses.
The safety of all the stakeholders and users of the nation’s gateway should be of paramount importance and their business should come second.
With high profile events and meetings to be staged in the country in the near future this should be an eye-opener and should be taken into serious consideration.
In three months time, the FIFA Under 20 Women’s World Cup will be held in Port Moresby and the Government and ithr relevant authorities such as NAC must get their act together mon security measures to ensure that our visitors and people feel safe during this very important sporting event.

PX Mangi
Port Moresby