SMC urged to scuttle other big projects

MANILA, Philippines — With San Miguel Corp. (SMC) having decided to not push through with its Pasig River Expressway (PAREx) project, critics of the plan now urge the conglomerate to formally withdraw the tollway project by canceling permits and applications.

Advocacy group Ilog Pasiglahin, in a statement, welcomed the pronouncement of tycoon Ramon Ang and asked the billionaire to revoke the tollway project’s supplemental toll operations agreement signed with the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) in 2022.

TRB executive director Alvin Carullo told the Inquirer on Tuesday, however, there has been “no official communication to that effect yet.”

READ: San Miguel drops PAREx project

Along with this, the private sector group called on SMC to withdraw environmental compliance certificate (ECC) application with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as well as permit applications and resolutions with local government units.

ECC is a document proving that a certain project will not inflict serious harm on the surrounding natural environment.

In 2021, scientist group Advocates of Science and Technology for the People said the proposed elevated expressway would cause damage to the river as it would block the natural sunlight and “affect the remaining food chain of Pasig River.”

“The Pasig River is critical to the preservation of our environment and our culture. Whatever happens to the Pasig River also affects its connected bodies of water—Manila Bay, Laguna de Bay, Marikina River, San Juan River, Taguig River and many others,” Ilog Pasiglahin said.

Last Monday, Ang said they were no longer pushing through with PAREx due to public pressure.The planned 19.37-kilometer PAREx would have been a six-lane, elevated toll road along the Pasig River, from Radial Road 10 in Manila and connecting to the proposed South East Metro Manila Expressway (Semme) at Circumferential Road 6.

READ: San Miguel, Ayala Land ink toll road access deal

Seeme is a planned 33-km toll road project that connects Taguig City to Batasan Complex in Quezon City.

Apart from PAREx, the advocacy group also called on the billionaire to rethink the alignment of the conglomerate’s other tollway projects in the pipeline.

“If SMC and Mr. Ang are truly committed to saving the river, they must also cancel the portion of the [Semme] that will be constructed on the easternmost part of the river from Buting, Pasig City to Taytay, Rizal,” the group said.

In addition, the group also urged the corporate giant to “scrap the portion of the Southern Access Link Expressway (SALEX) that will be built around the Manila Bay Port Area, Intramuros, and the Hospicio de San Jose in Manila near the Pasig River.”

The planned 40.65-km SALEX is an elevated expressway comprising the Shoreline Expressway and Metro Manila Skyway extension projects.

Meanwhile, San Miguel is also working on the 88-km Cavite-Batangas Expressway and Nasugbu-Bauan Expressway with Metro Pacific Investment Corp. The toll roads will traverse Silang, Amadeo, Tagaytay, Indang, Mendez and Alfonso in Cavite and will link motorists to Nasugbu and Bauan in Batangas. INQ