Aquino vows to finish key infra projects before 2016

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III on Monday vowed to finish the administration’s major infrastructure projects before his term ends in 2016 including three new provincial airports and transportation terminals in Metro Manila.

In his third State of the Nation Address (Sona), the President said building infrastructures in the country will help generate significant jobs for Filipinos.

“A large portion of our job generation strategy is building sufficient infrastructure. For those who have gone to Boracay on vacation, you have probably seen our newly christened terminal in Caticlan. The plan to expand its runway has also been laid out,” he said.

“And we will not stop there. Before the end of my term, the New Bohol Airport in Panglao, New Legaspi Airport in Daraga, and Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental will have been built,” he added.

He likewise said that international airports in Mactan, Cebu, Tacloban, and Puerto Princesa Airport will also be upgraded.

Airports in Butuan, Cotabato, Dipolog, Pagadian, Tawi-Tawi, Southern Leyte, and San Vicente in Palawan will also be remodeled, added Aquino.

The President said Transportation and Communications Secretary Manuel Roxas II promised to repair structural defects in Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 before his next Sona in 2013.

“I am the fourth president to deal with the problems of NAIA Terminal 3. Airplanes are not all that take off and land here; so did problems and anomalies,” he said.

“Secretary Mar Roxas has already said: Before we convene at the next Sona, the structural defects we inherited in NAIA 3 will have been fully repaired,” he related.

President Aquino also cited the implementation of the LRT Line 1 Cavite Extension project, which expects to alleviate traffic in Las Piñas, Parañaque, and Cavite, when completed.

To further improve traffic in Metro Manila, he said there will be two elevated roads directly connecting the North Luzon and South Luzon Expressways.

The two connector road projects will be completed by 2015, said Aquino.

“It will reduce travel time between Clark and Calamba to 1 hour and 40 minutes,” he added.

The Chief Executive also pledged to construct high-quality provincial bus terminals in Taguig, Quezon City, and Parañaque to ease traffic on Edsa.

CARP land distribution

President Aquino likewise promised to complete the distribution of land covered by the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program during his term.

“My mother initiated the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program. It is only just that this program sees its conclusion during my term,” he said.

“We are improving the system, so that we can more swiftly and more efficiently realize agrarian reform. The government is doing everything in its power to ensure that our farmers can claim as their own the land they have tilled and nurtured with their sweat,” he added.

“There are those, however, who wish to obstruct us. I say to them: We will obey the law. The law says, the nation says, and I say: Before I step down, all the land covered by CARP will have been distributed,” he said. (Jill Beltran/Sunnex)