Aquino hopes to leave mark on public works

The Aquino administration’s infrastructure ventures may turn out to be its lasting legacy to a nation sorely in need of vital public facilities and installations.

That legacy, Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima said, could trump even those of previous administrations whose key figures unfailingly flaunt monuments to their years in office.

But the big difference is that the projects of the Aquino administration are free of controversy and that their implementation may serve as a model for future administrations, Purisima said in an interview.

“The Marcoses were in power for 26 years, so it is impossible for us to match them in terms of the quantity of projects built,” Purisima said.

President Macapagal-Arroyo “had nine years, and she had her ‘Strong Republic,’ but I don’t think she was able to do it,” Purisima added, explaining that many projects undertaken during her watch are now being questioned, including the so-called “nautical highway.”

Some lawmakers are claiming that facilities under the Arroyo landmark project, intended to connect the country’s major islands through a string of 72 roll-on roll-off ports, are overpriced.

And while Imelda Marcos, former first lady and now an Ilocos Norte representative, continues to flaunt the bridges, roads and buildings that “beautified” the country during her time, one facility stands out that has come to be the byword of a monumental failure—the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.

The Philippines honored its commitment to pay tens of billions of pesos over decades for a power facility that never produced a single watt of electricity.

With much fanfare, the government last year launched the first batch of its public-private partnership (PPP) package, consisting of 10 airport, tollway and rail-line projects.

Back then, officials promised that the first contracts would be awarded by this month. But Purisima said that the government would “not be able to do that in July anymore.”

“Some people don’t appreciate this … unnecessary delay [in implementing the projects],” Purisima said. “But if you rush this … you pay for it down the road.”

He said this was what happened in past projects that had been fast-tracked through questionable back-door deals.

“Our six years may soon be up and we may not be able to do every item on the list ourselves. But with the right foundation that we will set [during out watch], succeeding administrations will find it very sensible to implement these projects,” Purisima said. “And because these projects are done properly, the benefit to people is lasting and they will reclaim confidence and trust towards government…. That is far more enduring than any structure anyone can build.”