COTABATO CITY: President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the immediate completion of the mothballed M’lang airport in Central Mindanao during his recent visit to M’lang, North Cotabato.
The President, who was met by Secretary Emmanuel Piñol of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and in whose term as the governor of North Cotabato the airport was constructed.
Duterte said the airport must be opened and utilized very soon.
He asked Sen. Christopher Lawrence “ Bong” Go to source out funds for the completion of the airport.
The President gave the order after Piñol and North Cotabato Gov. Nancy Catamco sought his intervention for the immediate operation of the airport here to boost economic development in mainland Mindanao.
He then asked his former special assistant and now Senator Go to coordinate with the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and source funds for the completion and operation of the airport.
Piñol said he and Catamco earlier briefed President Duterte on the actual status of the airport, also known as the M’lang airport.
The airport’s construction started in 2004 when Piñol was governor.
The 1.8-kilometer runway and terminal building were completed in 2010.
Present when the President issued the instruction were Go, Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año, Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rolando Joselito Bautista, National Housing Authority General Manager Marcelino Escalada Jr., M’lang Mayor Russel Abonado, Piñol and Catamco.
The airport’s terminal building has been completed but the facility has not been operated because the provincial government of North Cotabato has not turned over the 62-hectare property to the DoTr.
The previous leadership, then under the provincial governor and now Vice Governor Emmylou Mendoza, cited “missing documents” as the reason behind their failure to turn over the project to the DoTr for completion and commissioning.
Catamco assured the President that the provincial government will complete all the needed documents for the official turnover of the property to the DoTr.
Go said the operation of the airport is vital because it is located in a strategic area and will boost the economic growth of the Soccsksargen region where many agricultural products, including highly-perishable fruits, come from.
“I will talk to DoTr Secretary Arthur Tugade and I will help look for additional funding for the completion of the airport,” Piñol quoted the senator as saying.
He said the senator also vowed to seek his colleagues’ support to fast-track the completion and operation of the M’lang airport before 2022.
Catamco said the opening of the airport would pave the way for a more brisk economic activity like fast transportation of agriculture products and improve trading engagements.
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