THE signs are everywhere and on the horizon: steel beams jutting to the sky, new roads being paved in record time and highways hewn north and south.
These observable and tangible developments are the hallmarks of the Duterte administration’s unprecedented “Build, Build, Build” program, in which the nation will witness an unprecedented activity of constructing and developing structures across the archipelago. Everything is envisioned to usher in a new era of growth and development for the country never before seen in recent times.
To the surprise of many, the government, through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), tapped a young and brilliant millennial to take part in “Build, Build, Build” in the person of Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo. In the peak of her 20s, she is appointed as chairman of the Infrastructure Cluster’s “Build, Build, Build” Committee.
Given her “toxic” timeline, Lamentillo seems to manage her schedule with ease. Considering all her engagements for work during the daytime and some more hours spent after for classes in law school, she was able to squeeze in meetings for the BusinessMirror’s Mission: PHL Envoys & Expats Awards campaign (where the DPWH will bestow recognitions for embassies and aid agencies for the Infrastructure Support Awards).
Not to mention, her days are still packed during weekends for studying, and she is still able to maintain her regular column for the Manila Bulletin.
As such, this writer anticipated that the interview with Lamentillo will take some time to happen. Lo and behold, after a quick exchange of texts, the interviewee was ready and raring to go with her replies. The BusinessMirror recently caught up—quite literally—with Lamentillo for this exclusive.
From our exchanges, the youthful government servant gave a glimpse of her current responsibilities, her professional experiences that led to an appointment to a post laden with great responsibilities and accountabilities, as well as an access to a mind of a millennial who is apparently on a mission: to redefine government leadership as we know it.
BusinessMirror: You head a very daunting, for some, intimidating, assignment and workload, especially for someone your age. How do you manage everything on your plate?
Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo: I never thought of age as a deterrent. In fact, I always believed that youth and women participation is critical and necessary—if and when genuine reform is to be achieved. The youth is its nation’s lifeline. We have to be part of the discourses [and] the dialogues.
I believe I’m extremely lucky to be working with department secretaries Mark A. Villar, Arthur P. Tugade, Benjamin E. Diokno, Ernesto M. Pernia, Carlos G. Dominguez III, as well as Bases Conversion and Development Authority’s president Vivencio B. Dizon—leaders whom I respect, look up to and admire.
In the next four years, Filipinos will enjoy the benefits of “Build, Build, Build”—President Duterte’s infrastructure plan—which will effectively usher in the Philippines’s Golden Age of Infrastructure. It’s always nice to be part of something bigger than yourself.
How did you prepare, or what prepared you, for your current role?
To be honest, this was a job I never imagined myself doing growing up. But I have been working since I was 18 years old. In fact, I have survived an active firefight and a sinking boat.
At 23, I have already visited all the regions of my country, and I have seen it at its worst. While working for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO), I have seen the extensive damage caused by Category 5-Supertyphoon Haiyan (local codename: Yolanda) across nine of the Philippines’ poorest provinces. Up to now, I bring the experience and the insights with me.
After all, how can one forget the story of a man who had to choose between his girlfriend and her one-year-old niece, or how a father could wake up with all of his seven daughters dead?
Do you feel your education provided you an edge in life and profession? Or do you think you possess a “whatever-it-takes” personality?
I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Development Communication in the University of the Philippines (UP)-Los Baños and graduated cum laude, having garnered the highest general weighted average for Development Journalism majors. Right now, I’m taking an executive program in Economic Development at the Harvard Kennedy School while pursuing my Juris Doctor Degree in UP Diliman.
But I agree with Mark Twain: “Never let schooling interfere with your education.” There is so much more to learn outside the classroom, beyond the traditional schools of thought.
Who are your life or career influencers?
They are actually a lot: Villar, Sen. Loren Legarda, Stanislav Saling, Rep. Emmeline Aglipay-Villar, [businessman] Dioceldo Sy, Alessia Anibaldi, Dr. Luis Rey Velasco, Atty. Gaby Concepcion and [GMA news anchor] Howie Severino.
I also want to particularly mention Aliw Media Group’s Chairman D. Edgard A. Cabangon and the publisher of the BusinessMirror, T. Anthony C. Cabangon, whom I also consider as my mentors.
What were the defining moments in your life that made you choose your current life track or career path?
I was 18 years old when I approached Severino, who at that time was the editor in chief of GMA News Online, and asked him if I could contribute as a stringer. He gave me a chance.
My first article was revised about a dozen times. Subsequent stories also included numerous revisions. He was the [one] who taught me how important it is to have an honest criticism of one’s self and work. After all, it is complacency—and not failure—that deters growth.
After my stint in GMA 7, I worked with Legarda, who showed me the value of detail, hard work and discipline. I could still recall the number of days we worked until way past midnight. From her, I learned that even the smallest details need attention, and that planning is as important as execution itself.
I left my job at the Senate for a one-month contract in the United Nations. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon was coming to the Philippines and they needed a national consultant. I thought, if I’d be taking risks, this might be the best time to do it. I was young and had very little obligations. While a work extension was a possibility, my performance would have to be evaluated at the end of every contract.
Saling was my first supervisor in the UNDP. It was through his guidance that I was first acquainted with the UN. The first time I saw Tacloban [after the onslaught of Yolanda], I was crying. Cadavers were in black plastic bags and the streets smelled of death and decay. In several barangays, not a single house survived.
In one of our visits, I met a fourth-year high-school student, who was three months shy from graduation. Before Yolanda hit, he was studying for his exams with his girlfriend. It was supposed to be the last Christmas they would be dependent on their allowances.
They dreamt of traveling together after college. It was going to be their first time. They never had money to spare before. But in three months, they thought, everything will be all right. It can wait. After all, they’ve already waited for four years.
What he didn’t expect was the fact that the storm would be so strong, he would have to choose between saving his girlfriend or her one-year-old niece. For months, he would stare longingly at the sea, at the exact same spot he found his girlfriend, with a piece of galvanized iron that was used for roofing pierced through her stomach.
After almost a year in UNDP, I transferred to the UN-FAO, which at that time was under the leadership of Alessia Anibaldi and Jose Luis Fernandez. Over coffee and lunch, we would often talk about the resilience and optimism of the Filipinos. Everyone was surprised when, one month after the typhoon, residents started putting up Christmas decorations made of rubble and broken appliances.
My stint at the UN-FAO lasted for over a year before I decided to work with Villar, who hired me in a café while I was only wearing shorts, slippers and a hoodie. He was a man who gave me an opportunity when I least expected it, who paid no or very little attention to clothes or appearance. He is one of the reasons I managed to pursue my law studies while working in the DPWH.
But more importantly, I appreciate his vision, policy and strategy for the department. In the first six months of his term, he was able to employ drone technology, eliminate ghost projects via satellite technology, improve project delivery by implementing a round-the-clock construction schedule in key projects, simplify and increase effectiveness of right-of-way processes, devise master plans and create a 24/7 multimedia citizens’ feedback mechanism, among others.
Describe a typical day for you. How do you spend your weekends or free time?
My day could start as early as 12:01 a.m., when the DPWH opens a new road, bridge or flood-control project. As a policy, we open infrastructure projects bearing in mind the convenience of the public.
On a regular day, work starts at 7 a.m. After an eight-hour day, I head to UP Diliman for night classes, which would last until 9 p.m.
My weekends are usually spent studying.
What motivates you?
In 2012, Philippine media reported that the country lost P2.4 billion a day due to traffic. Six years after, a study conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency said the number had gone up to P3.5 billion a day due to the worsening road congestion in Metro Manila.
Now, road usage in the metropolis is at about 13.4 million trips per day and could go as high as 16.1 million in 17 years. I have been complaining about traffic ever since.
As a millennial, how do you make a difference?
“Build, Build, Build” is the government’s medium-term goal to increase infrastructure spending: from 5.4 percent of the country’s GDP in 2017, to 7.3 percent by the end of Duterte’s term in 2022. The numbers are higher than the 2.4-percent average recorded by the past six administrations in the last five decades, and the highest budget allocation for infrastructure in Philippine history.
Included in the program is the Luzon Spine Expressway Network, a 1,040-kilometer expressway network which would connect the northern and southernmost parts of Luzon. By building a total of 18 expressways with a total road length of 655 kilometers, Villar aims to complement the existing expressway network spanning 385 kilometers.
Once completed, the travel time from Metro Manila to San Fernando, La Union, will be reduced from almost 7 hours to 3 hours and 10 minutes. Moreover, travel time from La Union to Bicol will be reduced from almost 20 hours to a little over 8.
The first project expected to be completed this year under the network is the North Luzon Expressway Harbor Link Project Segment 10, a 5.58-kilometer, six-lane elevated expressway connecting McArthur Highway in Valenzuela City and C-3 in Caloocan City, which is expected to shorten travel time from Manila to Quezon City to just about 11 minutes.
I’m just happy to be part of the Philippines’ Golden Age of Infrastructure.
How do you juggle your main job and others, like your column-writing?
I adhere to a very strict schedule and try not to deviate from it.
Do you feel being part of this new generation has a differential advantage over the older set?
I think every generation is different, and there are definitely advantages in seeing different generations of employees working together.
Now we’re trying to change the way government projects are communicated, and the diversities within the group have been very helpful.
Rather than segregating generations, what we need to promote is synergy and inclusion. In our ability to come together and work as a team, we are able to achieve real development.
What is your advice, or what bits of wisdom, could you share with your peers?
Young Filipinos should not be placed and put inside a box, forced to adopt or replicate conventional models of participation. It is in the space and in their freedom to innovate that we are able to progress from the status quo.
What is your life philosophy? What do you believe in?
Growing up, I’ve always been reminded of two Chinese proverbs: “Be not afraid of growing slowly. Be afraid of only standing still.”
And: “Failure is not falling down, but refusing to get up.”
Is there a side of you which very few friends or people know of?
I can speak Hiligaynon, Karay-a and Bisaya.
How do you relax? Any hobbies or talents that you nurture?
I love chess, photography and target-shooting.
If you were to sing your “life song/s” in a karaoke, what would you line up?
I’d have to go for U2’s “Beautiful Day,” Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” and John Lennon’s “Imagine.”