Offices of national government agencies may soon inch their way out of Metro Manila to outlying regions, as a proposal for their relocation gains traction in the House of Representatives.
House Committee on Housing and Urban Development Chairman Alfredo Benitez of Negros Occidental said his panel has recently approved a substitute bill moving national government administrative offices from the National Capital Region (NCR) to the provinces.
Benitez said the proposal seeks to decongest Metro Manila and ensure the functions of government during calamities, while allowing a better government transaction system.
“Overpopulation, traffic congestion and high vulnerability to natural disasters have made Metro Manila, or the NCR, a pariah among world cities,” Benitez said.
The measure, he added, will now be submitted to the mother committee for final approval. After the approval on the panel level, the bill will be transmitted to the plenary for deliberations.
The lawmaker said there is a need to rethink and develop a master plan that will decongest Metro Manila.
Progress after relocation
According to Benitez, several countries where government agencies were relocated outside the main city have flourished, such as South Korea, Malaysia and Brazil.
“Relocation of capitals had already been done by several countries. Malaysia, for instance, built a new administrative capital to ease congestion in Kuala Lumpur. Putrajaya is envisioned to be a ‘green’ and ‘intelligent’ city,’ with wide parks and open spaces, and strong ICT [information communication technology] infrastructure. Its aesthetic design also shows distinct Islamic character to reflect Malaysian identity and heritage as a predominantly Muslim country,” he said.
Alternative plan
National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Ernesto Pernia, in a position paper, suggested that a “well-coordinated master plan on how to decongest NCR and support the development of regional and subregional centers [must] be prepared instead.”
“This can be done through existing institutions, particularly the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, which is mandated by law to formulate and coordinate implementation of medium- and long-term plans and programs for the land use and physical development within NCR,” Pernia said.
While recognizing the intention of the proposal, Pernia said under the 2017-2022 Philippine Development Plan (PDP), the NCR is envisioned to remain as the seat of the national government.
“The strategy for decongesting NCR is to direct growth to regional and subregional centers, which have the economies of scale and agglomeration needed to become attractive investment hosts and alternatives to NCR,” he said.
“The PDP also provides the basis for identifying strategic infrastructure projects that will ensure connectivity among urban centers and rural production areas. It encourages local government units to incorporate disaster-risk reduction in their comprehensive land-use plans, given that it is at the local level where hazards could be defined in detail, including the specific interventions to reduce vulnerability to disasters,” Pernia added.
Under the bill, the Administrative Capital City Planning Commission shall be created to lead the development of a comprehensive plan to relocate the government agencies and establish an administrative capital city outside Metro Manila.
Also, the Administrative Capital City Planning Commission shall conduct a feasibility study of relocating most of the administrative offices of government agencies outside of Metro Manila. The commission will be placed under the Office of the President.
“The authority shall call upon any department, bureau, office, agency, or instrumentality of the government, including government-owned or -controlled corporations, government financial institutions, local government units, and request non-governmental organizations, the private sector and other entities for assistance as the circumstances and exigencies may require in carrying out his mandate,” the bill said.
It added the commission shall also submit to the President the mechanisms and oversee the initial phase of the transfer of the government agencies.
The measure said the commission shall identify the most suitable site for the administrative city and provide a master plan for the development of the site.
The bill also allows the commission to engage the assistance of local and foreign consultants and experts in the development of the master plan.
According to the measure, the master plan for the establishment of an administrative city shall guide and accomplish a coordinated, adjusted, harmonious development of the capital of the Philippines, which will, in accordance with the present and future needs, best promote health, safety, morals, order, convenience and prosperity.
The measure said that the amount necessary to implement this proposal shall be included in the budget of the Office of the President in the annual General Appropriations Act.
ISFs
Another major concern, Benitez said, is the increasing number of squatters, informal settler families (ISFs), in Metro Manila, eating up valuable urban space.
Benitez stressed that medium-rise buildings could be constructed in the areas that will be vacated by these government agencies.
The lawmaker said the off-city government programs for the ISFs failed because many of the relocatees have returned to the NCR, as their relocation sites are far from their source of income.
“Out of the 1.5 million ISFs in the country, nearly 600,000 are found in NCR,” he said.
The Philippine Statistics Authority said Metro Manila is home to 11.9 million people in 2010, making it one of the world’s most densely populated areas.
Meanwhile, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) Assistant Secretary Avelino Tolentino III suggested that to make housing projects more affordable, government lands should be converted into housing sites.
Avelino said this could be cheaper in the long run for the government, which will still own the lands, as relocation sites entail spending money to relocate to far-flung areas the ISFs, who, however, end up returning to the NCR due to the unavailability of basic services in the new housing sites.
By allowing the free use of government lands, Avelino said, tenants will only pay a small amount for the investment the government will spend in constructing the building and for its maintenance.
Clark City
During the technical working group phase, AlloyMTD Philippines President engineer Isaac S. David presented before lawmakers their plan to build Clark Green City as the new administrative center for the national government.
Like other cities, David said the $2.5-billion project is large enough to accommodate business, government, education, housing and lifestyle amenities.
He said the Clark Green City will be well-connected through public transport like rail and expressway.
The Clark Green City is patterned after Putrajaya. Putrajaya is the administrative capital of Malaysia, where there are executive, legislative and judicial offices.
Benitez admitted that it would take a longer time to implement this project, but “what’s important here is, we are now starting the process.”
“One of our dilemmas is most of our programs are [only] at short term because we were only looking at a six-year time frame for any administration. [With this], we cannot plan more than six years, but in this case, this requires more planning and implementation period,” he added.
The Clark Green City is envisioned as a disaster-resilient metropolis that could face the strongest typhoons and earthquakes.
“[We have to be resilient since] during Supertyphoon Yolanda, there was a time when there was no government. [This] will assure that we will not be immobilized during calamities because [of the absence of the government],” he said.
Benitez said Metro Manila also sits above a fault line that could trigger massive and destructive earthquakes.
The Clark Green City project is now being evaluated by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority.
Image credits: Alex0sun | Dreamstime.com
7 comments
Back in 2012, The MMDA as headed by Chairman Francis Tolentino have already identified Tanay in Rizal as the most ideal site to build the new administrative capital of the nation due to its high elevation as a plateau which is expected to be flood free and it does not sit on a fault line and away from any volcanic activity. It is insulated by the Sierra Madre mountains from the destructive force of a Typhoon. It is strategically located at the center of Luzon where the north meet south and east meet west just like Metro Manila. it will be serve by two gateways, the port of Manila and the port of Infanta. In case of invasion, citizens can turn to these gateways to exodus and to receive supplies from allies. One advantage of Tanay is its proximity to Metro Manila it can be a can counter magnet for people to work and live in Rizal province. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/59d635b74030428a10fc54b505aebdf478b4f6ef3fe36596571e4529a50d9b4d.png https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0751a3b8c80b057cb2a266a976a843a0d73a3ad579584bbd4ef5a92900f1e15d.jpg
New Clark City in Pampanga and Tarlac is near MT. Pinatubo. We don’t want a new administrative city where our government will be crippled by a catastrophic volcanic explosion due to its proximity to Mt Pinatubo, a dormant Volcano. Photos from the internet.
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Metro Manila Development Authority has Greenprint 2030 to make Metro Manila more sustainable and livable in the coming years.
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Other countries are building Megacities with more people to fuel their economies such as Chinas pearl river delta Metropolis, Yangtze delta metropolis and the largest Jing-Jin-Ji, India’s Mumbai is also being expanded to be more megapolitan. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8bf2a6c485c18d9cd554af6b807834554b3fb5ad9c4afb3bd6156735ac60287f.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f0145f19edccee61dfa5332f77023dd8f820491165e5f3891f49987b2629092d.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d78855ee1a4bb958993b8be7aed74096934ebe236c7da9aed054adeb7765f7cc.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a1cbeba366354abdf405ab85c960da83014f9a02277e1479e102c3f841e72d59.jpg
We should also establish our own new metropolis starting with Mega Manila which will be composed of the Tagalog provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Metro Manila, Laguna,Cavite and Infanta, Quezon which is within the 50 km radius. This will definitely decongest Metro Manila as industries, institutions and people will be dispersed in these continuous urban area. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/87c4a3acd0c1a53b4e57a73262015af7f7feefdc92fcc28e8f4a38d08f673653.jpg
Metro Manila actually has a designated National Government center and it is Lungsod Quezon. Unfortunately most of the vast government lands intended for Government Offices buildings are being colonized by informal settlers. Today the government is developing the triangle as Lungsod Quezon CBD to be lease off to developers. Informal settlers shanty town were demolished and relocated to govt housing projects to give way for upscale development. The National Government Center in Batasan Hills where lands are intended for gov’t use are heavily colonized by informal settlers. If the govt can relocate informmal settlers in the QC triangle to govt housing projects to gave way for a CBD why can’t it be possible doing it in the National Government Center in Batasan Hills to realized the nation’s aspiration to have a beautiful National Government Center where all government offices of the three Branches of Government located in one city.
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Metro Manila actually has a designated National Government center and it is Lungsod Quezon. Unfortunately most of the vast government lands intended for Government Offices buildings are being colonized by informal settlers. Today the government is developing the triangle as Lungsod Quezon CBD to be lease off to developers. Informal settlers shanty town were demolished and relocated to govt housing projects to give way for upscale development. The National Government Center in Batasan Hills where lands are intended for gov’t use are heavily colonized by informal settlers. If the govt can relocate informmal settlers in the QC triangle to govt housing projects to gave way for a CBD why can’t it be possible doing it in the National Government Center in Batasan Hills to realized the nation’s aspiration to have a beautiful National Government Center where all government offices of the three Branches of Government located in one city. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/89c95e58a50b76cfcd3f4c9c94568a06649d02b3b768981bdcec27722aa5d224.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/58c217d6044985e0dcde54ef851d4b82d71e5a6160b9f1d0cd3ba8a7da42aac3.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f24dc1ec296f78ea2735dcaaeb6241c4d9fead2246fdf20e4b159173e2dcf96d.jpg