The government intends to build and activate a radio broadcast station in Pagasa as it sustains the development of the island following the construction of a beaching ramp and a sheltered port there last month.
The radio station was among the facilities and structures that the Duterte administration is considering for the island, which is the seat of government of the Municipality of Kalayaan, according to Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana during a virtual pre-Sona briefing on Wednesday.
The municipality, located off the island of Palawan, is being disputed by China, which has attempted to block, or even delay, the construction of the newly built infrastructures by swarming the waters of Pagasa with Chinese maritime militia vessels.
Lorenzana said that aside from the radio station, the government will repair the Rancudo Airfield in the island and construct other facilities in order to make Pagasa more habitable for its around 300 residents.
The defense chief said the Duterte administration had managed to deal with the issue of territorial dispute with China and the other claimants by way of a constructive dialogue, which resulted in the improvement of the situation in the West Philippine Sea.
The territorial squabble and China’s aggressive activities in the region that it dispute has prompted the military to speed up its modernization program by acquiring modern assets and equipment, although the defense chief said that some of the money earmarked for the military acquisition has been reprogrammed to finance government efforts to curb the spread of Covid-19.
At least P9.4 billion in modernization money, Lorenzana said, had been returned to the Department of Budget and Management to help fund the government’s response to the pandemic.
Lorenzana said the assets, or equipment, for which the money has been allotted would still be acquired, only that their acquisitions would have to be moved back.
Image credits: AP/Bullit Marquez