President Duterte reports strides in infrastructure development
Increased government spending on infrastructure development fueled by a comprehensive tax reform program enabled the government to build critical infrastructure projects that benefit the people, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said on Monday. In his last State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Duterte said that upon assuming office, he made it sure to increase the government infrastructure spending to an average of five percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), significantly higher than his predecessors.
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|July 24-30, 2021
“Thanks to the comprehensive tax reform program that enabled us to fund critical infrastructure projects. Today, we can see the tangible results all around,” he said. Among these projects is the MRT-3, which was a horror for daily commuters with its frequent breakdowns. With the improvements, MRT3 now runs 23 trains at 60 kilometers per hour, he said. Another one is the LRT-2 East Extension Project that has extended Line 2 by adding two more stations. Travel time between Manila and Antipolo was reduced
from the usual two or three hours to only just 40 minutes. Through a partnership with the private sector, the Duterte government was able to open Stage 3 of the Metro Manila Skyway in January this year, decongesting EDSA and other major roads in Metro Manila. The government also inaugurated on Independence Day last month the Kalayaan Bridge, which is part of the BGCOrtigas Center Link Project, reducing the usual one hour travel time between the two business districts to
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