“Night Owl: A Nationbuilder’s Manual” translated into our local languages—Ilokano, Bisaya, and Hiligaynon—will soon be available, according to its author Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo, Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Undersecretary and former Build, Build, Build committee chair.
Lamentillo said that the Ilokano and Bisaya editions will also serve as an ode to two leaders—former President Rodrigo R. Duterte, a Bisaya, whose vision made possible the completion of 29,264 kilometers of roads, 5,950 bridges, 11,340 flood mitigation structures, 222 evacuation centers, 150,149 classrooms, 214 airport projects, and 451 seaport projects in the span of five years; and President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., an Ilocano, who is keeping his promise to continue the infrastructure projects of the previous administration.
Meanwhile, the Hiligaynon edition is a homage to Lamentillo’s home province of Iloilo.
She said that translating Night Owl into local languages helps spread the importance of infrastructure development to a wider Filipino audience.
“It is worth sharing how through Build Build Build we were able to improve people’s lives and uplift communities, especially those who previously did not have access to or had difficulty accessing schools, markets, hospitals, livelihood opportunities, and basic services,” she stressed.
Night Owl, authored by Lamentillo and published by the Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation, narrates the country’s journey to improved lives and abounding opportunities brought about by former President Duterte’s Build Build Build. It also narrates how the DPWH, under the leadership of then Secretary Mark A. Villar, was able to overcome the challenges of right-of-way, ghost projects, and unmet deadlines by using technology and strengthening transparency and accountability measures.
Also included is a chapter on the digital infrastructure program of President Marcos Jr. under the Build Better More thrust—which builds on the gains of Build Build Build while incorporating a strong digital infrastructure program to ensure that all Filipinos will have access to affordable and reliable internet—which will provide Filipinos not only opportunities to learn new technologies but also access to online learning, telemedicine, online banking, and other digital services.
