Construction of new Zambo airport pushed

WHILE SOME politicians are claiming credits for the proposed new international airport here and other national government infrastructures, unknown to the Zamboangueños, the project is being pushed by Mayor Beng Climaco even when she was a member of the City Council.

DOTr Asec Vingson visits Zambo

TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANT Secretary Vice Admiral Narciso Vingson Jr. called on Mayor Beng Climaco during a recent visit in Zamboanga City.

Duterte inspects Zambo projects

ZAMBOANGA CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte arrived late Thursday afternoon in this southern city and inaugurated various projects at the Port of Zamboanga.

Sulu praises Coast Guard’s Ursabia for ‘sterling performance’

ZAMBOANGA CITY – Sulu Governor Sakur Tan on Thursday praised Philippine Coast Guard Commandant, Admiral George Ursabia Jr., who retired at age 56, and thanked him for his “sterling performance” and calling him the “best Commandant.”

De Lima seeks probe into DOTr funds, project delays

SENATOR LEILA de Lima has urged Congress to investigate the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) deficient disbursement of its allocated aid funds under the Bayanihan 2 Act, as well as other delays in its project implementation.

Climaco pushes anew for new world-class Zambo airport

THE MINDANAO Development Authority said it is pushing for the initial construction or completion of the Zamboanga International Airport project before the end of the Duterte presidency next year.

Thank you so much President Duterte, DOTR: Mayor Beng

ZAMBOANGA CITY Mayor Beng Climaco thanked President Rodrigo Duterte for prioritizing the Zamboanga International Airport rehabilitation projects following the approval of the P235 million funding included in the P4.5-trillion national budget for 2021.

Strictly follow order, wear face shield, mask - Zambo Mayor

ZAMBOANGA MAYOR Beng Climaco urged the riding public to strictly comply with the mandatory wearing of face shields and face masks following the order of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) effective August 15.

Use of face shields now mandatory!

THE WEARING of face shield and face mask are now mandatory in public conveyance following the order of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) effective August 15 in an effort to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus disease.

Duterte proposes monorail plan for Cebu to ease traffic problems

CEBU CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte vowed to help provide funds for above-ground infrastructure projects to improve the traffic condition in Metro Cebu which, experts say, has cost the local economy over P1 billion in daily productivity.

“Cebu is an old city… Wala pa atong gobyerno, naa na ang inyong daan. So when it became a city, mao nang naghuot mo, you cannot expand it anymore even if you’ll have mass transportation. So it’s either train or sa taas,” Duterte said during his recent visit here. 

Include Metro Cebu in emergency powers revival to solve traffic woes

CEBU CITY – Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, Michael Lloyd Dino, expressed full support to proposals that will grant President Rodrigo Duterte emergency powers to solve the traffic problem in Metro Manila, and other big cities like Cebu.

Dino backs proposal made by Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade to give Duterte emergency powers to solve road congestion in the remaining three years of his term. He said this proposal is backed with facts and realities.

He wanted Metro Cebu to be included in the scope of the presidential emergency powers, saying that the metropolis has been “experiencing traffic congestion due to lack of mass transport system and narrow roads not having been widened for so many years.”

According to Dino, unresolved traffic problem in Metro Cebu has caused at least P1.1 billion in economic losses a day. “I am confident that our lawmakers will look into Sec. Tugade’s proposal. Lawmakers who frequent Metro Manila to attend to their official functions have also experienced being stuck in traffic in Metro Cebu,” Dino told the Philippine News Agency.

Dino also recalled having proposed to include Metro Cebu when Tugade pushed for the emergency powers on the side lines of the presentation of 10-point socio-economic agenda of the Duterte administration at the SMX Convention Center in Davao City on June 21, 2016. “I have presented our case in Metro Cebu when the idea on emergency powers was hatched in Davao in 2016. The national government supported our cause and local government officials supported the call to include us in case Congress passes that emergency powers bill,” he said.

Dino said he attended several public hearings by the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation, headed by Rep. Cesar Sarmiento of Catanduanes, and pitched in strategies on how to solve the traffic problems in Metro Cebu. “It has long been recognized that Metro Cebu’s traffic is brought about by lack of efficient mass transport system and overcapacity of our existing roads,” he said, stressing that “while the crisis is still manageable, we need to act now”. Dino said Tugade has offered Metro Cebu a “basket of solutions” to solve the traffic woes.

“The Cebuanos believe that such emergency powers will hasten the implementation of infrastructure projects aimed to add more capacity on our existing roads and the mass transport backbone which is the Light Rail Transit,” he noted.

He said he already conducted a series of consultation with the local government units in Cebu, the business community, and the regional executives from transportation-related agencies of government to ferret out more ideas on how to solve the woes on Metro Cebu’s thoroughfares. (John Rey Saavedra)

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PPA remits record P9.41-B in dividends, taxes for 2018

THE PHILIPPINE PORTS Authority (PPA) continues its strong fiscal performance, as it remitted P3.51 billion in dividends to the national coffers in 2018.

 

On top of this, the state-owned agency likewise paid P5.9 billion in taxes for 2018, more than half of the total taxes it paid in the last 10 years. Overall, the PPA is contributing a record-breaking amount of P9.41 billion in terms of dividends and taxes to the national government for the past year, which can be used for the government’s various social welfare, health and other projects.

 

Latest data from the PPA showed that total dividends for 2018 amounted to PhP3.51 billion, setting another all-time record for the PPA. In 2017, PPA remitted some P3.1 billion, its highest recorded dividend then in the last 30 years. However, dividend payment for 2018 overshadowed the previous year’s, and now marks PPA’s highest dividend payment in history.

 

While growth percentage slowed down for the period covered, the increase in dividend remained high as the 2018 figure is 13 percent higher than the 2017 dividends remitted. PPA is mandated to remit at least 50 percent of its annual net income to the national government after it was granted fiscal autonomy during the term of former President Corazon C. Aquino.

 

Meanwhile, total revenues for 2018 reached P17.49 billion or 8.13 percent higher than the target for the year. The amount is also higher by 14 percent compared to the total revenues recorded a year earlier.

 

Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade lauded the PPA for its robust fiscal performance which, in turn, shall contribute to the Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program. “As I previously said to the men and women of the PPA, their agency’s future fiscal performance shall be measured against their latest records.

 

The agency has achieved so much in terms of dividends remittance despite the massive infrastructure spending for port rehabilitation and development. This kind of fiscal management shall truly aid the government in achieving the ‘Golden Age of Infrastructure’,” Tugade said.

 

According to PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago, the agency’s performance in the last two years has placed the PPA on stable financial ground, which will enable the agency to continue sustaining port services of the highest standards. “The streamlining of port processes coupled with strategic port development and modernization have greatly contributed to this strong performance as we aim for our operations to be on par with global standards,” Santiago said.

 

Santiago added that the overall remittance of Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCCs) is a positive indication of the country’s growing economic status worldwide.

 

“This is also a testament to the resiliency of the Philippine economy as it continues to thrive despite external pressures from different foreign economies,” Santiago said. With this, the PPA is expected to once again land in the higher echelon of the "Billionaires' Club" of GOCCs contributing billions of pesos in dividends to the national government. PPA is a consistent member of this club in the last decade but belonging only to the bottom half of the club. It only upped the ante when the Duterte administration took over in 2016.

 

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DOTr probes Cebu Pacific flight cancellations

CEBU PACIFIC is facing an investigation by the Department of Transportation (DOTr) after the budget airliner had cancelled many of its flights.

DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade said the probe will determine if the cancellations are caused by internal operating conditions of Cebu Pacific or the structure and conditions of airports that serve their flights. “I have talked with CAB (Civil Aeronautics Board), MIAA (Manila International Airport Authority) and CAAP (Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines) to look into the matter.

While we would like to understand the present predicament of Cebu Pacific in relation to their internal requirements, they should equally understand our mandate of making sure that the traveling public is safe, secure and convenient,” Tugade said.

Tugade said they expect to complete the investigation within two weeks. “We need to look into various factors such as plane turnaround time, number of operating planes, the procedures being implemented on our taxiways and runways, et cetera. We will provide remedies to whatever shortcomings we have,” he said.

He said Cebu Pacific was reported to have reduced their flights amid its current operating conditions to ensure the safety of their passengers. Tugade said he had met with aviation officials before the Holy Week to address the issue of on-time performance (OTP) of all airlines which determines the timely take-off and departure of their flights.

He directed the officials to submit daily reports of OTPs of airlines to determine causes of flight cancellations and delays. “What caused the delay? Is it the airline or the airport? Once we do that, we have to address this all predicated on assuring safety, punctuality and convenience of the riding public. OTP is not only predicated on airport structure and procedure. It also addresses their own internal number of operating carriers,” Tugade said.

Cebu Pacific said it will reduce around 10 flights a day this May amid ongoing disruptions of its operations while passengers experience extended delays and some on the spot cancellations. “For the month of May, CEB will be reducing approximately 10 flights a day out of daily operations of 400 flights.

CEB is currently reviewing adjustments required for June and beyond to create space in its schedule for operational recovery, minimize rolling delays and give passengers the chance to make alternate travel plans, Cebu Pacific has to temporarily reduce the number of its flights given the current operating conditions, particularly in its Manila hub,” the airline said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.

The airline has announced the cancellation of a total of 116 domestic flights this month. But ABS-CBN reported that many of airline’s pilots and flight crew had resigned or working now for other airline companies that pay double or triple of what they had been getting from Cebu Pacific.

 It said many of the Cebu Pacific’s pilots and crew had to work longer hours due to the airline’s additional flights and lack of manpower to handle such huge passenger demand. (Aerol John Pateña, PNA. With a report from the Mindanao Examiner.)

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PWDs get discounts on fares

THE LAND TRANSPORTATION Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has ordered public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers and operators to grant a 20 percent discount to persons with disabilities (PWDs) so long as they present documents, such as an identification card issued by the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons or local government officials.

This order was contained in LTFRB Memo Circular ‎2018-004 states that PWDs can avail of discounted fares. They may also avail of the full 20 percent fare discount from transportation network vehicle services, such as Uber and Grab, as well as taxi services regardless of the number of services. Fare discount for PWDs is a benefit guaranteed by the law, according to Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade.

“We are asking all PUV operators, from jeepneys to taxis, to grant discounts to PWDs,” Tugade said.

He said violators shall be slapped with a P5,000 fine for the first offense, and P10,000 for the second offense plus a six-month suspension of their Certificate of Public Convenience.For the third and final offense, operators would have their franchises cancelled or revoked. 

The memo circular was issued in compliance with Republic Act No. 10754 or “An Act Expanding the Benefits and Privileges of Persons with Disability”. (Aerol John Pateña)

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