FORMER President Fidel V. Ramos has cited San Miguel Corp. (SMC) President Ramon S. Ang for the various onstream projects the business tycoon is spearheading.
In a statement, Ramos described the business tycoon as a visionary, patriotic and strategic thinker, citing SMC’s projects such as the Bulacan International Airport, water and power, to the extension of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEx) all the way to Laoag, Ilocos Norte.
The former President made the statement during Ang’s courtesy call on Friday at the Ramos Peace and Development (RPDEV) Foundation office in Makati in the presence of MWSS Administrator Reynaldo V. Velasco, who was FVR’s first Special Action Force (SAF) commander, new National Tobacco Administration Director Gen. Wilson Victorio, Engr. Alfredo Reyes, Freddie Jalasco and Ramos family biographer Melandrew T. Velasco.
“Continue with the noble task of nation-building with the various flagship projects you are pushing for the country and our people. It’s seldom that we find a great Filipino and an alumnus of the Far Eastern University like you,” Ramos was quoted as telling Ang in the statement.
Ang hailed Ramos as a living Korean War and Edsa hero who fought Marcos and defended democracy from coups nine times during the Cory Aquino presidency.
He said the milestone achievements Ramos made in his six years as President continue to benefit today’s generation.
“Sir, you are one of kind who comes only once in our lifetime, and we Filipinos are fortunate to have a leader and a statesman like you, who continues to guide this nation,” Ang told FVR. An upbeat Ang briefed FVR, unveiling his plan on the Bulacan International Airport, an unsolicited public-private partnership (PPP) proposal from the SMC to construct, operate and maintain the airport on a 2,500-hectare land in Bulakan, Bulacan.
“The project, estimated at $15 billion, will be undertaken over a period of five years to seven years to full completion,” Ang said. He added the Bulacan airport will have four parallel runways [expandable to six], and will be equipped with modern and world-class facilities.
Ang told FVR that the new airport will create some 1 million jobs once construction starts, and by the time it’s completed, millions more of new tourism jobs will be created,” “Travel will be much easier and more comfortable for our air passengers, for overseas Filipino workers and foreign tourists. Access will also be very easy with multiple expressways that will bring the airport within 30 minutes or shorter from anywhere in Metro Manila,” he added.
Ang said the airport is expected to accommodate 100 million passengers a year—a huge improvement compared to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s current capacity of just about 31 million passengers annually. He envisioned the Philippines will attract more tourists in the coming years once the SMC airport will be completed in six years.
“In 2018, the Philippines only attracted 7.1 million tourists, compared to our neighboring countries like Thailand with 35.4 million; Malaysia, 25.9 million; Singapore, 13.9 million; Japan, 28.6 million; and Indonesia, 14.4 million,” Ang said.
Meanwhile, Ang has thrown his full support behind the construction of new water-supply sources projects under the New Water Security Roadmap crafted by MWSS Administrator Rey Velasco.
In anticipation of the burgeoning population and expansion of the Bulacan Bulk Water Supply including the Bulacan airport, MWSS has identified the ABC Projects as part of its short- and medium-term water-supply projects tailor-made for Bulacan Bulk Water.