DAVAO City First District Representative Paolo Duterte is seeking an investigation on the implementation of the Mindanao Railway Project, which is hounded with several complaints and anomalies.
Duterte, along with Benguet lone district Rep. Eric Yap filed House Resolution (HR) No. 286, which calls for a congressional investigation of the proposed MRP, specifically on the way the Department of Transportation (DOTr) carried out its right-of-way acquisitions and expropriation of private properties to be affected by the rail line.
The lawmaker said he received numerous complaints from Davao City residents whose residences would be directly affected by the proposed railway line.
Duterte said the proposed MRP rail line would pass through densely populated areas in Davao City, “without the appropriate geological surveys or proper public consultations with the affected communities”.
He clarified he is not opposing the big-ticket project, which was lobbied under the administration of his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Both the proponents acknowledged that the MRP “will not only make travel faster but also safer, more convenient and comfortable for passengers in the said corridor”.
However, the former President's son, said he wanted the project to be done the right way, and that the national government must look into several complaints and accusations of anomalies by some residents affected by the planned project.
The complaints, he said, must also be given weight especially on the report that "there are variations in the offers for the acquisition of right-of-way or expropriation of the private properties by the DOTr and/or its contractors, sub-contractors, or other service providers.”
“These variations in offers have substantial discrepancies from the actual Zonal Value or Fair Market Value of the properties affected,” the two congressmen said.
Rep. Duterte said there were also reports that some politicians bought vast parcels of lands where the rail line will be constructed at a cheap price and are now selling it to the government ten times or more than the original price. He did not name those politicians.
It was learned that the Barangay Catalunan Grande in Davao City has already passed a resolution opposing the MRP as it would affect several residences in their barangay and would "result to undue safety and health hazard, as well as noise pollution, to name a few.”
“There is a need to properly determine the correct and appropriate manner of identifying the areas where the MRP will traverse in order to ensure public safety and welfare while still being able to pursue the MRP for sustained growth and development in the region,” Rep. Duterte and Yap said in filing HR No.286.
Rep. Duterte and Yap said the probe will “ensure transparency and accountability on the use of public funds while always keeping in mind the safety and welfare of the general populace in the delivery of public services”.
Back in the 18th Congress, the two congressmen also filed a similar call for a probe in 2021.
The three-phase MRP covers 1,530 kilometers of circumferential and spurs rail lines connecting several areas in Mindanao like the Davao provinces, Iligan City, Cagayan de Oro City, General Santos City, and Zamboanga.
Phase 1 of the MRP (Tagum-Davao-Digos segment) is a 105-km line that is expected to reduce travel time from Davao del Norte to Davao del Sur from 3.5 hours to just 1.3 hours. It will have eight stations: Tagum, Carmen, Panabo, Mudiang, Davao Terminal, Toril, Sta. Cruz, and Digos. A 10-hectare depot will be built in Tagum City.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, during his first State of the Nation Address on July 25, vowed to continue the implementation of the MRP under his administration.
Marcos, earlier July this year, ordered DOTr to revive its negotiation for the loan agreements with China for the funding of the three big-ticket railway projects of the government under the Build, Build, Build Program. This came after the Chinese government failed to act on the funding requests by the Duterte administration.
The Davao-Digos Railway Project failed to proceed after China was not able to submit a shortlist of contractors.
The negotiations for the projects started in 2018. The loan application was only valid until May 2022.
DOTr said on August 14 that the Philippine and Chinese governments have restarted talks regarding the major transport projects in the country.
In a statement, the DOTr said Secretary Jaime Bautista and Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian agreed to restart the discussion on the matter during a meeting in Makati City on August 11.
“The two officials discussed resumption of talks for the major China-funded railway projects such as the PNR South Long Haul Project (North-South Commuter Railway), Subic-Clark Railway, and Mindanao Railway (Tagum-Davao-Digos),” the agency said. RGL with reports from SunStar Philippines