P10-B earmarked for Mindoro projects; infrastructure top priority, says

PUERTO GALERA, Philippines—President Benigno Aquino III on Friday paid a visit to Barangay Talipanan in the tourist haven of Mindoro to orient local authorities on the major infrastructure projects to be carried out in the provinces of Oriental Mindoro and Occidental Mindoro.

A total P10.7-billion has been allocated for these projects; P6.1 billion of which will be spent for constructions in Oriental Mindoro, and the remainder of P4.6 billion on Occidental Mindoro.

The budget earmarked for Oriental Mindoro covers completed or ongoing infrastructure developments – such as roads, bridges, flood control, airport, ports, irrigation, and farm-to-market roads – from the period spanning 2011-2015.

Among other projects, the President and Oriental Mindoro Gov. Alfonso Umali discussed the Mindoro Island Circumferential Road, an undertaking currently in progress to connect the northern parts of Occidental and Oriental Mindoro.

According to the President, there needs to be a joint effort on the completion of the 20-kilometer gap in the road “to minimize the impact on the environment.” He said further that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has yet to decide whether to “preserve the coastline for tourism purposes” or to “preserve the rainforest” to determine which way to go in said undertaking.

President Aquino said that twenty-one percent of the national budget for 2015 has been set-aside for infrastructure, which remains among the the top priorities of his administration.