Lawyer files P1.5M damage suit against MIAA after fainting at NAIA

Ninoy Aquino International Airport INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—A former senatorial candidate filed a P1.5-million damage suit against the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and an airline after he hurt his head and elbow when he fainted due to the heat while queuing for his flight at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in May.

In a civil case filed before the Quezon City regional trial court Wednesday morning, lawyer Samson Alcantara accused MIAA and Zest Airways Inc. of “willful breach of contractual and statutory obligations, to provide for the protection, safety and convenience of plaintiff, an airline passenger and a senior citizen.”

Alcantara collapsed unconscious while queuing for his flight to Malaysia at NAIA Terminal 4 on May 23. He was with fellow professors from the University of Sto. Tomas Faculty of Civil Law who were booked for a weekend vacation in Kota Kinabalu.

In his six-page complaint, the lawyer described the check-in area as “hot, congested, was not provided with seats, and did not have any senior citizens’ express or priority lanes.”

“[I] therefore had no choice but to remain standing, for almost two hours, while waiting for the check-in counters of said defendant to open. [W]hile standing and waiting for the check-in counter to open, [I] lost consciousness, fell on the floor and sustained injuries in the head and left elbow,” he recounted.

Alcantara was brought to the MIAA clinic and then to the San Juan de Dios Hospital in Pasay City. He was later confined at the Capitol Medical Center in Quezon City and discharged on May 26.

The lawyer blamed his injuries on MIAA and Zest Air and claimed actual damages of not less than P200,000.00 saying he was subjected to “extreme physical pain, serious anxiety and humiliation.” He also claimed moral damages of P400,000; exemplary damages, P500,000; and attorney’s fees, P400,000.

“The malevolence and callousness of defendants are shown by the fact that they have, despite widespread public outrage, allowed the use of NAIA 4 check-in premises although they are fully aware that these pose a serious danger to the health and safety of the air passengers who to reach their destination have no choice but to use the same,” Alcantara said.

He also invoked protection under the Air Passenger Bill of Rights adopted by the trade and transportation departments in 2012.

The lawyer was among the at least three passengers reported by the media to have fainted due to the lack of air-conditioning in the terminals that were undergoing renovations. The hot and humid conditions in the terminals were aggravated by long queues in the immigration counters, whose computers recently suffered from glitches.

The MIAA and the transportation department apologized to passengers for the inconvenience and installed air coolers in the terminals.

Alcantara, in a phone interview, said he filed the suit to encourage other air travelers who suffered like him to file similar cases, adding, “This is a way teach airport and airline authorities a lesson about prioritizing the welfare of passengers, particularly the elderly.”

The lawyer said that under its charter, MIAA, as operator of NAIA Terminal 4 and collector of terminal fees from passengers, was obligated to render services “directed towards the care, convenience and security of passengers, visitors, and other airport users.”

Zest Air, on the other hand, had the duty to provide for the safety and convenience of passengers, he said.

The lawyer also accused MIAA of bad faith when it issued a press statement on the incident, which claimed Alcantara’s fall was due to hunger.

“Plaintiff was not hungry on that occasion. He may say, not even in a shy way, that he has more than enough income to avoid hunger. He is a practicing lawyer, a lecturer and bar reviewer in several law schools, author of law books, and the president of Social Justice Society, the political party that filed the first petition in 2013 to declare the PDAF unconstitutional,” he said.

Alcantara ran for the Senate in May 2013 but was defeated. He and other losing senators have a pending petition before the Supreme Court seeking to annul the senatorial results due to alleged electronic cheating, non-compliance with election laws, and other irregularities.

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