Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Martin Diño is proposing six major projects worth P140 billion, which include new cargo terminals, roads, and bridges, in anticipation of a surge in investments in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone (SBFZ).
Diño, in a statement, said SBMA already sent a memorandum to the National Economic and Development Authority seeking its endorsement to Malacañang “so that we can go ahead and fast-track these big ticket projects and complete them in the soonest possible time.”
“These infrastructure projects will bring Subic Freeport and other centers of commerce in Luzon area closer to each other,” the SBMA chairman said.
Diño is proposing the construction of New Container Terminals (NCTs) 3 and 4. The undertaking, with a budget of P10 billion, aims to build the two terminals parallel to the existing NCTs 1 and 2 that handle container shipments going in and out of Subic Port. The previous SBMA administration had also proposed erecting two new NCTs to accommodate expected growth of volumes at Subic Port.
The executive also recommends the construction of four major roads and bridges at a cost of P126 billion, seen to shorten the travel time of cargo trucks and passenger vehicles traveling between Northern Luzon and Metro Manila.
“Where these roads pass, expect rapid economic growth which means more jobs being created and more revenue being collected. There will be more progress for everyone,” he added.
Of the total budget, about P91 billion will be spent on a new 65-kilometer multimodal expressway directly connecting SBFZ to Manila.
Also proposed, with a project cost P11 billion, is a 17-kilometer bypass road connecting Subic’s container terminals to Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), enabling motorists to skip the busy commercial and leisure areas of the freeport.
Another suggested initiative is the P22-billion Tipo-Castillejos Bypass Road, which involves the construction of seven bridges with an overall length of over 25 kilometers.
A P2-billion budget is also sought for the Tipo-SCTEX road widening project that aims to improve the capacity of Tipo Road.
Additionally, the Naval Supply Depot, which mostly serves as storage facility for bulk grains and other non-containerized cargoes, is being eye for expansion and improvement, at a P4 billion budget.
Aside from these, Diño is suggesting the expansion of SBFZ in order to offer more available space to investors. He said a 3,000-hectare industrial zone in Redondo Peninsula, located behind the shipyard of South Korean-owned Hanjin Heavy Industries Corp., is one area that can be developed for this purpose.
Power struggle
The plans were laid out amid a power struggle at the SBMA, leading to alleged confusion among locators.
Diño insists he is also the SBMA administrator apart from being chairman. The two positions were held simultaneously by the previous SBMA chief, Roberto Garcia.
But the Office of the President has clarified that Diño is only chairman of the Board of Directors.
“Please be advised that the designation of Atty. Randy B. Escolango as Officer-in-Charge, Office of the Administrator, SBMA, has not been revoked by the Office of the President and thus remains in full force and effect,” said Menardo I. Guevarra, Sr. Deputy Executive Secretary in a letter dated Nov. 28, 2016.
Guevarra’s letter is in response to Diños letter dated 21 November 2016 informing the Office of the President that he (Diño) has assumed the functions of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman/Administrator pursuant to Republic Act No. 7227.
More importantly, under Section 13(d) of Republic Act No. 7227, the Administrator of the SBMA shall be appointed by the President and no other, Guevarra told Diño.
Diño was appointed SBMA Chairman on September 23, 2016 and he assumed office on Oct. 3, 2016.
When erstwhile chairman and administrator Garcia announced that while he has been replaced as chairman, he will continue to function as administrator until one has been appointed in his place, Diño declared himself the SBMA Administrator in an Office Memorandum on Oct. 10, 2016 sent to SBMA offices and locators.
Nine days later, on Oct. 19, 2016, after Diño’s self-appointment, the Office of the President through Executive Secretary Salvador C. Medialdea, accepted the resignation earlier filed by Garcia and designated Escolango as OIC administrator.
But Diño continued to present himself as SBMA administrator, issuing dozens of orders and memos and voiding actions taken by Escolango as OIC Administrator.
