CEBU CITY - Outgoing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Thursday witnessed the soft opening of the P1.625-billion tunnel of the Cebu South Coastal Road Project (CSCRP).
Arroyo, in her speech, said she is happy to step down from the presidency, seeing several infrastructure projects in Cebu, which her administration has funded, like the Cebu North Coastal Road, the concreting of major roads, the construction of school buildings, bridges and many more.
In behalf of the Cebu City Government and the people of Cebu City, Acting City Mayor and Mayor-elect Michael Rama thanked Arroyo for funding the project.
Rama said the CSCRP and its component, the tunnel, can greatly decongest traffic and fast track economic growth.
"This project could not have been realized if not for the support of President Arroyo," Rama said.
However, the President disappointed a group of people waiting for her at the Zapatera Elementary School.
Due to her tight schedule, Arroyo skipped the inspection at the school, disappointing school officials and students who waited for her.
Vice Mayor-elect Joy Augustus Young said the President's scheduled visit would have been a chance for the teachers and students to thank her for the education programs of her administration, and to bid her farewell before she steps down from the presidency.
Fund
He said if it were not for Arroyo, Senator-elect Sergio "Serge" Osmeña III would not have been able to realign P100 million of his priority development assistance fund during his previous term for school buildings in the city.
"I'm disappointed that she's not here. Everybody really went out of their way and had wanted to see her because she's the president who gave us so much. We would have wanted to thank her. Nevertheless, we bid her farewell and thank her for all the support. Daghan gyud siya ug nahimo," said Young.
The vice mayor-elect represented the City Government for the scheduled inspection by the president of the four-story, 20-classroom school building inside the school in Barangay Zapatera.
Presidential Security Group staff had the whole school secured but by 2 p.m., the Presidential Management Staff received instructions that Arroyo could not make it.
Around 20 grade school pupils in costumes were in line, ready to dance the Sinulog despite the heat when school officials learned Arroyo decided to cancel the visit.
At the last minute, the Parent-Teacher Association officers and the teachers also gave their school facade a fresh coat of paint, in preparation for the President's visit.
She sent Department of Education Secretary Mona Valisno instead, who relayed to the teachers and school officials the President's regrets for failing to make it to their school, and assured them she would report to her their testimonies about the benefits of the different education programs of her administration.
Valisno thanked the City Government for funding the construction of the school building worth some P16 million.
The building was constructed last January and is expected to be finished next month.
Young, also the chairman of the Local School Board, said the 20 new classrooms will lessen the shortage of classrooms in the city, which is more than 100 rooms.
Fayette Riñen of the Philippine Information Agency said the President was pressed for time.
From the tunnel, Arroyo had to rush to a wedding at the Sacred Heart Church, just a few hundred meters from the Zapatera school.
In her speech at the inauguration of the tunnel, Arroyo said the project was conceptualized by the Cebu City Government and funded by the National Government using a loan from Japan.
Earlier, Representative Eduardo R. Gullas (Cebu, first district) said the Regional Development Council, which he chaired when he was Cebu governor, conceptualized the project.
Limited
The tunnel, which is due for completion this August, will be opened to the public, specifically to light vehicles, for limited hours every day to allow the work to be finished. It will be opened from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Japan's Ambassador to the Philippines, Makoto Katsura, said the CSCRP is part of the third phase of the Metro Cebu Development Project, in which the Japanese government provided P9 billion (equivalent to 18.4 billion yen) through the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
In his speech, Katsura said Japan recognizes the role and importance of infrastructure improvement in achieving economic development and in raising the living conditions of the Filipinos.
Katsura added the four-lane tunnel marks the completion of the CSCRP and will provide uninterrupted access from southern Cebu to the Cebu City business district, Cebu ports and Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
"I would like to reaffirm the government of Japan's commitment to assist the Philippines in its nation-building efforts. I would also like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation for the Philippine government's unwavering stance in promoting Japan-Philippines relations as we jointly pursue a strategic partnership between our two countries for the future," Katsura said.
While Arroyo's visit to Cebu on Thursday may have been her last, two Cebu officials are optimistic Cebu will continue to receive projects from the National Government under the new administration.
Excited
Incoming Representatives Benhur Salimbangon (Cebu, fourth district) and Arturo Radaza (Lapu-Lapu City), who are both Arroyo allies, said they hope President-elect Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III will continue to help Cebu realize its economic and development plans.
Radaza said he is willing to cooperate with Aquino if it is for the development of the country.
In a separate interview, Salimbangon said he is excited with Aquino's assumption as the country's head of state.
Salimbangon plans to sponsor a bill making his district an economic zone and he hopes to get Aquino's approval. (EOB/LCR/JKV/Sun.Star Cebu)