(PILI, Camarines Sur) President Benigno S. Aquino III inaugurated here Friday the P66.32-million expanded Pili Diversion Road that aims to ease the daily trip of more than 5,000 motorists.
The road-widening project, which began in March 2014 and was completed last month, stretches to nearly four kilometers (km) with two more lanes added, cutting the travel time of vehicles plying it by more than half.
In his speech, President Aquino said this road offers an alternative route for motorists coming from Albay, Sorsogon and other parts of the Partido region in Camarines Sur, who wish to skip Poblacion and go straight to the town of Pili.
“Dahil sa proyekto, nabawasan nang halos 6,000 sasakyan ang bumabagtas sa Pili-Poblacion Road. Kita ninyo naman ang ginhawang dulot ng mabuting pamamahala,” he told the townspeople here.
Under President Aquino’s watch, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) allotted P15.96 billion to fund infrastructure projects in Camarines Sur, tripling its previous budget of P4.73 billion during the previous administration.
Besides the improved Pili Diversion Road and the San Jose Bridge, which President Aquino also inspected earlier, the DPWH is completing other key projects in the province, such as the Tigaon-Goa-San Jose-Lagonoy-Guijalo Road, Pili-Tigaon-Albay Boundary Road, and Daang Maharlika.
The government allocated a total of P766.5 billion to fund scores of infrastructure projects nationwide in 2016 alone, or about 5 percent of the country’s estimated gross domestic product for the year.
“Sa paglago ng ekonomiya, sabay din ang pagtataas ng budget sa pagpapaunlad ng ating mga proyekto at programang naghahatid ng benepisyo at nagbabawas ng sakripisyo sa ating mga boss,” President Aquino said.
“Kaya naman sa target nating pagsasakongkreto ng humigit-kumulang na 7,200 kilometers na national roads, natapos na natin ang 6,212 kilometrong national roads. ‘Yun pong natitira, may inilaan tayong pondo at target pong matapos ngayong taon,” he added.
President Aquino reported that the DPWH also completed 1,550km of tourism roads and 3,700 local roads. The agency managed to replace as well 12,585 lineal meters of temporary bridges nationwide with permanent ones.
“Dito po sa inyo sa Pili, dahil sa mas maayos na daanan, mas mabilis nang nararating ang sikat na sikat ninyong CamSur Watersports Complex at iba pang magagandang destinasyon,” he said.
“Kaya sa lahat ng ito, kung tutuusin, lampas-lampas na ang nagawa ng DPWH. Talaga namang bilib tayo at nagpapasalamat sa kalidad at bilis ng trabaho ng DPWH,” he added.
Another significant enterprise that has been realized in Camarines Sur is the Sabang Fishport Develpment Project in Calabanga, which is expected to benefit more than 80,000 people once it becomes fully operational.
“Malinaw po: good governance is good economics. Sa tapat at mabuting pamamahala napapaunlad ang ekonomiya. Ito rin mismo ang nagbibigay sa gobyerno ng higit na kakayahang bigyang-lakas ang ating mamamayan upang makiambag sa lalo pang pag-unlad ng bansa,” President Aquino said.
Also during the same event, the President made a pitch for the candidacy of his preferred successor, former interior secretary Manuel Roxas II and his running mate, Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo.
“Sa ika-siyam ng Mayo, haharap tayo sa sangandaan. Marami pong manliligaw at iprepresenta ang sarili para iboto ninyo. Mahalaga hong piliin natin ang ating tamang kandidato; hindi ‘yung puro salita kundi ‘yung marami nang nagawa,” he said.
“‘Yan ho para sa akin walang iba ay ang tambalan ni Mar Roxas at ang tunay na anak ng Camarines Sur, si Leni Robredo. Sila po hindi lang basta nangangako. Nagsakripisyo na sila at nagtrabaho para sa kapakanan ng mas nakakarami,” he added. (PND)
