Marcos pledges more infra to improve lives of Filipinos

MANILA: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Thursday that the government owes it to Filipinos to construct major roads and infrastructure that will stimulate connectivity, ease traffic, speed up travel, and foster progress and social change.

He made this statement after he saw the signing of two contracts that will fund the civil works of four stations of the Metro Manila Subway - Contract Packages 102 (CP102) and 103 (CP103).

After the contracts were signed, Marcos addressed the crowd, giving commuters reassurance that the government will work to improve the country's public transit system.

“We owe it to the Filipino people to build major roads and critical infrastructure that will not only spur progress and social change, but also promote interconnectivity, ease traffic, and reduce travel time. Let me assure you that the government remains dedicated to maximizing its resources to pursue even more ambitious endeavors that will bring comfort and progress to Filipinos all over the country,” Marcos stated.

He also ordered the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to make sure that all current subway projects are implemented properly and smoothly.

“The signing of these contract packages is a clear demonstration of this administration’s commitment to pursuing big infrastructure projects that will foster growth and revitalize the economy,” Marcos said.

Marcos also expressed gratitude to Japan for working with the Philippines on what he called an “important infrastructure development project.”

“The world recognizes Japan for having a very efficient rail transport system, which the Philippines aspires to one day emulate,” Marcos said.

He also thanked the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which provided funding to support the implementation of CP102 and CP103.

“I thank you not only for this specific project, I thank the JICA who have been supporting the development of the Philippines for the last 50 years, especially in terms of our infrastructure projects and even our agricultural projects,” Marcos stated.

He also thanked the Nishimatsu-DMCI Joint Venture and Sumitomo Mitsui Construction for cooperating closely with the Philippines to guarantee the completion of the contract packages.

The joint venture of Nishimatsu Construction Co., Ltd. and DM Consunji Inc. (DMCI) received CP102, with a total contract value of around P21 billion, while Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co., Ltd. received CP103, with a total contract value of around P28 billion.

CP102 includes the construction of the Quezon Avenue Station located inside the former Manila Seedling Bank and the East Avenue Station along V. Luna Avenue, as well as the connecting tunnels.

CP103, on the other hand, includes the construction of Anonas Station in Barangay Project 4, Quezon City and Camp Aguinaldo Station, as well as the connecting tunnels. The Anonas Subway Station will be connected to the Light Rail Transit Line 2 (LRT-2) Anonas Station.

The subway projects, according to Marcos, will not only improve the transport of people, products, and services within Metro Manila, but they will also provide job opportunities for Filipinos.

“Even before it begins its operations, it is already set to yield many fruits — the implementation of the civil works for Contract Package 102 and Contract Package 103 alone is set to create thousands of jobs and opportunities for many Filipinos,” Marcos said.

The project is anticipated to serve more than half a million passengers daily from Valenzuela City to Parañaque City once it is operational.

“We hope to reduce the terrible sight of going home at midnight along EDSA and still seeing people waiting to take the bus,” Marcos stated.

The project is also expected to cut the travel time from Quezon City to Pasay City from one hour and 30 minutes to just 35 minutes.

“That is the advantage of what the subway will bring. They know that they can always go to the subway station and there will be a train coming along in a few minutes. The cut in travel time is also very important but still it is to reduce the uncertainty as to when we will get home,” Marcos said. “We will reduce the terrible stories that we hear of people who no longer see their children because they come home at 1:30 in the morning and the children are asleep. They have to wake up at 4 o’clock in the morning to get back on the bus to fight with the traffic coming back to work. The subway and all our public transport systems will be able to help and remedy so the quality of life in the city should improve significantly.”

Photo from Philippine News Agency

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