AFTER several delays, the latest word is that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has targeted the beginning of August 2015 for the awarding of the Laguna Lakeshore Expressway-Dike (LLED) project.
As we have previously written, this is an important project that will have substantial and offers long-term benefits to Metro Manila and the surrounding area. The first phase is a 47-kilometer-long six-lane road that incorporates a flood-control dike, bridges, pumping stations and floodgates. The expressway will run from the city of Taguig to the municipality of Los Baños in the province of Laguna.
The second part of the LLED will be the reclamation of approximately 700 hectares west of the expressway-dike in Taguig and Muntinlupa, separated from the existing Laguna de Bay shoreline by a 100-meter to 150-meter channel. The total project cost is estimated at P123 billion and is being undertaken as a public-private partnership (PPP) project.
As with all government infrastructure proposals, and perhaps particularly with the LLED, there are some controversies. The LLED is not simply building a new road, but will forever change the Laguna de Bay and surrounding area.
However, there is always going to be opposition to change, even if that change is useful and advantageous. It is only human nature.
The LLED is the largest PPP project in terms of cost. But the importance of the project is that it is a “game-changer” that will forever alter the region. This is not simply building a road or a flood-control dike.
While certainly on a much smaller scale, this is like China’s Three Gorges Dam in terms of economic and social impact. This project changes Metro Manila in a similar way that moving the Hong Kong International Airport to Chek Lap Kok island did. The LLED is like the Four Rivers Restoration Project of South Korea, combining economic and environmental goals.
The LLED will require the close cooperation of several critical national government agencies. The regional Laguna Lake Development Authority is deeply involved. Further, every local government unit along the path will be affected including that of the cities and municipalities of Taguig, Muntinlupa, San Pedro, Santa Rosa, Cabuyao, Calamba and Los Baños.
The LLED, though, is not just a major infrastructure project; it is a test for the government. Its success or failure depends solely on the Philippine government. Once and for all, the Philippine government, no matter who happens to be the president, will prove whether or not it has the ability to do its job in providing for the public.
That is the real legacy of the LLED.
source: Business Mirror
No comments:
Post a Comment