Hot on the heels of the fistfight involving Mon Tulfo, Raymart Santiago, Claudine Barretto, and the celebrity couple’s friends was the revelation: “Walang CCTV camera.”

This came as a surprise to many, including the politicians.

Raymart even contested, “Hindi ako naniniwala.”

But in a matter-of-fact manner, Connie Bungag of Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s (NAIA) media affairs told Philippine Entertainment Portal (PEP.ph) in an exclusive interview how that came to be.

“Terminal 3, as a backgrounder, as you know,” she began, before adding, “Terminal 3 has been entangled in a legal dispute.”

It can be recalled that former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo called the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) contract of Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc. (PIATCO) “anomalous.”

Bungag continued, “So for the longest time, I think eight years, 'no, it has not been of use, as in closed siya.

“But the equipment was there, the system was there, it’s just that hindi siya napagana simply because we were not…the airport authorities were…prohibited by the court to touch anything at the terminal.

“We were just told to be the custodians of the terminal until the legal case is over.”

It was only last year, she said, that they “obtained clearance from the court to finally start working on the terminal again.”

She added, “It was also the only time that we’re able to check on which facilities pa are supposed to be, actually, reactivated na kasi it’s there na, e…”

The CCTV cameras, “because hindi siya nagamit,” became “obsolete.”

DATA-GATHERING. For this reason, the airport’s police intelligence and investigation department had to rely on eyewitness accounts.

So far, they’re almost done with the data-gathering.

Bungag related, “So far, we have obtained the statements from the six security guards, ah, the ones in white, and the three others from the airport group personnel, plus, I understand they also gave na the statement of the Cebu Pacific staff—whom Ms. Barretto talked to when she arrived from Caticlan.”