| P4.17
billion Panglao-Bohol international airport project starts
|
P4.17 BILLION
PANGLAO AIRPORT — President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
leads the capsule-laying ceremonies for the proposed
P4.17 billion Panglao-Bohol International Airport Development
Project aimed at enhancing the tourism potential of
Bohol and the economic development of the entire Philippines
during her visit to Barangay Tawala, Panglao in Bohol.
This new world-class airport is expected to boost accessibility
to other parts of the Visayas and Mindanao. Assisting
the President are (from left) Transportation and Communications
Secretary Leandro Mendoza, Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado,
and MIAA General Manager Alfonso Cusi. (Marcelino Pascua/OPS-NIB
Photo) |
Pres.
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo formally launched the construction
of the P4.17-billion Panglao-Bohol International Airport here
to boost the tourism and trade potentials of this world-class
destination province.
The
President led the capsule-laying ceremony in Barangay Tawala
assisted by Department of Transportation and Communications
(DOTC) Secretary Leandro Mendoza, Manila International Airport
Authority (MIAA) General Manager Alfonso Cusi, Bohol Gov.
Erico Aumentado, and Panglao Mayor Benedicto Alcala.
After
the capsule-laying, the President was briefed by Cusi on the
status of the project funded through MIAA’s P3-billion
income and P1 billion from the DOTC.
Cusi
informed the President that the international airport is targeted
to be operational in the first quarter of 2010 and can accommodate
one million passengers per year.
The
President said the national government did not source any
foreign loans for the construction of the Panglao Bohol International
Airport as government revenue agencies have consistently exceeded
their targets these past few years.
Upon completion of the project, the President said foreign
tourists can now come directly and visit the famous destinations
in Bohol that include the Chocolate Hills, a candidate in
the Internet search for the New Seven Wonders of the World,
and Balicasag Island, a popular breathtaking dive site which
she herself would have a look at.
The
President said Bohol, the tenth largest island of the Philippines,
is one of the tourism centers of the country. Located in the
heart of the Visayas, it is famous for the tarsier, the world’s
smallest primate; pristine beaches and dive spots, caves and
crystal springs, ancestral homes, and centuries-old churches.
In
an earlier interview, Cusi and Mendoza said the Panglao International
Airport would not only cater to tourists and cargo but is
expected to boost trade, investments and economic activity
in Bohol as it would be a magnet for industrial parks and
economic zones. (OPS)
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