Contrary to claims made by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) that the Panguil Bay Bridge is part of President Duterte’s “Build, Build, Build” centerpiece infrastructure program, the project was initiated and approved during the administration of the late President Benigno Aquino III.
In a news item posted on its website on June 2, 2022 and titled “Construction of Mindanao’s Longest Bridge Now Halfway Done,” the DPWH said the project is “listed among the 119 infrastructure flagship projects under the ‘Build, Build, Build’ program.” http://(https://www.dpwh.gov.ph/dpwh/news/26522)
However, it was during the previous administration that the Philippine government secured funding for the project through a loan agreement with the Export-Import Bank of Korea-Economic Development Cooperation Fund (KEXIM-EDCF). The agreement was signed on April 28, 2016.
In fact, the signing of the loan agreement for Mindanao’s would-be longest bridge was posted on the DPWH website on June 10, 2016, shortly before Aquino III stepped down from power. (https://www.dpwh.gov.ph/dpwh/news/777)
Read the full story on Mindanews.
