"To decongest Metro Manila" Marañon wants Visayas islands interconnected

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines – Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. has pushed for the interconnectivity of the major Visayan islands to decongest key urban centers, including Metro Manila, by constructing the Negros-Panay bridge, for one.

Marañon, Regional Development Council-6 chairman, pointed out that connecting the islands in the Visayas "will consequently decongest Metro Manila because it would now be more inviting to encourage people to return to their provinces once they see thriving economic activities going on in the regions."

During the 4th Quarter RDC-6 meeting in Iloilo City last Tuesday, Marañon told officials of government agencies that the groundwork for the proposed Negros-Panay bridge should start soon since technical requisites and related studies, including the soil boring tests, takes a long time.

Marañon met with Ro-ann Bacal, regional director of the National Economic Development Authority; assistant regional director Raul Anlocotan; and Edilberto Tayao, regional director of the Department of Public Works and Highways.

He told them that "70 percent of our resources are concentrated in the National Capital Region, and the 30-percent is being divided among regional centers."

The realization of the bridge will lead the economies of both Negros and Panay to soar to greater heights as it would redound to increased traffic of goods, and open floodgates to diverse tourism destinations in the region. "This has been the dream of our forefathers and previous officials. We should work together on this," said the governor.

The Negros-Panay Bridge was estimated to cost P40 billion. According to a study on the project, the ideal take off site for the bridge should be in Barangay Tomontong of E.B. Magalona town, which is the shallowest point, facing Ajuy town in Iloilo.

In a related development, Doctor Enrique Oracion, head of the Silliman University Research Department, said political leaders and stakeholders should push for the interconnectivity in the Visayas.

Oracion said economic leaders agreed that interconnectivity on a larger scale, like among Visayas islands, will result in better economic and trade relations, tourism promotions and cultural exchanges, coordination in disaster management and an integrated approach to development planning.

Meanwhile, Marañon and Bacal said the approval of the NEDA Board on the expansion of the P30-billion Iloilo International Airport, and the P20-billion Bacolod-Silay Airport was timely because both airports, once completed, can already cater to international flights, which are currently concentrated in Manila and Cebu.

The expansion of two airports is expected to begin in 2016 through the public private partnership scheme.

"Visayas is the most fragmented. If only we can connect Cebu, Negros and Panay, then we can be very strong," Bacal said, adding the economic benefits that interconnectivity brings to central Philippine regions.