PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to speed up the completion of all ongoing infrastructure projects.
Malacañang Press Officer Claire Castro said Friday among the projects being prioritized was the temporary bridge connector that would serve as an interim replacement for the damaged Cabagan–Santa Maria Bridge in Isabela.
Castro said the bridge was 89-percent complete and expected to open in March for light vehicles.
She said Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon also personally inspected the makeshift bridge at Sitio Bongabong, Oriental Mindoro, to plan the construction of a stronger and safer span.
Castro said the DPWH has also submitted a comprehensive report to Marcos on the status of major infrastructure projects nationwide.
The projects include:
– Repair works on the Bukidnon–Davao Road, which were completed in January after the road was damaged in October last year.
– Repair of a sinkhole in Kennon Road completed in February.
– Repair on the Apalit section of the MacArthur Highway-Buhang Flyover in Jaro, Iloilo, and sections of the Maharlika Highway in Gumaca, Quezon; Samar; and Guinobatan, Albay.
– Phase I of the EDSA Rehabilitation Project, which is now 49.4-percent complete and expected to be completed in June.
Castro said that the government was accelerating work on all infrastructure projects “because for the President, if work is done quickly and properly, people will feel the benefits of public projects faster.”
Last month, Marcos ordered his Cabinet members to file biweekly reports on the progress of infrastructure projects and warned them against submitting falsified data.
“He said that if there is a report, he does not want it to be falsified or made to look good simply because there will be monitoring every two weeks,” Castro said in a previous briefing.
There must be a mechanism to ensure that the submitted reports are accurate to prevent a repeat of the falsified progress reports on incomplete and nonexistent infrastructure projects, she said.
Officials who will submit a falsified report will be penalized or even fired, Castro said.
“If it was intentional, it carries a corresponding penalty — they could be removed from their positions,” Castro said. “If it was negligence, the same thing would happen, because as public servants, there is no room for negligence.”