(The Philippine Star) | Updated December 9, 2017 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines —
If President Duterte is truly concerned about decongesting Metro Manila, then
the time to act is now, Sen. Grace Poe said yesterday.
Poe said that while the
envisioned development of areas outside Metro Manila would not be achieved in
the near future, the Duterte administration could start the ball rolling by the
President certifying the proposed emergency powers for traffic as urgent.
“Metro Manila may have
no future if we do not act now. We should look at old cities like Rome,
Tokyo, London and New York that have adapted to change, which means that with
proper planning, Metro Manila can become a vibrant, livable and sustainable
community just like its counterparts abroad,” she added.
In a speech in Pampanga
on Thursday, Duterte said Metro Manila would be “dead” in 25 years because of
decay and the worsening traffic.
The President said that
10 years from now, Manila should be “closed” and areas such as Pampanga should
be developed to bring in new investments.
In order to achieve
this, Poe said the government should seriously consider and push for outward
development to decongest Metro Manila for the medium to long term.
“But right now we have to jumpstart that
initiative. For this, political will is needed and the emergency powers could
come in handy if only the President would certify this as urgent,” Poe said.
“Perhaps with the
‘Build, Build, Build’ projects of President Duterte like the Mega Manila
subway, the completion of NLEX, SLEX, etc., we can see a marked improvement in
the near future,” she added.
The emergency powers
for traffic bill is currently being tackled in both the Senate and the House of
Representatives in plenary.
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