A company controlled by business tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan that had proposed to undertake the construction of a third Cebu-Mactan bridge has donated P5 million to the fund earmarked for the construction of the new Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC).
Representatives of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) yesterday met Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and handed over the P5 million check.
“This is a product of our intention to help the city as part of our corporate social responsibility. When we were looking at how we can help the city, we decided to help with CCMC,” said MPTC President and Chief Executive Officer Ramoncito Fernandez.
The amount would be added to the P16.3 million raised from the “Piso Mo, Hospital Ko” fund campaign that ended last month.
The old CCMC building was demolished after it was heavily damaged in the October 2013 earthquake that hit Central Visayas.
Since then the city government started accepting donations from private companies and the public, placing plastic water bottles in establishments and public access areas in the city.
Rama decided to recall the bottles last month citing security reasons. But even though the campaign was stopped, he said the city government will still continue accepting donations.
The mayor also announced yesterday that MPTC will also help the city in improving the Guadalupe River through “people privately-driven governance (PPDG).”
“This will be separate from the unsolicited proposal. Through CSR (corporate social responsibility) and PPDG, they will come in to help us come up with a master plan. It will be separate, but this will enhance the third bridge,” Rama told reporters yesterday.
The plan will help the city identify and address the “eyesores” like illegal settlers, violations of the three-meter easement zone law and other problems along the river.
Rama said the plan will also become part of the city’s program to construct hanging bicycle lanes and walkways along the riverbanks.
He said ramps will make them accessible to seniors and persons-with-disabilities (PWDs).
Without the master plan, there are still no specifics for the project, Rama said.
He added that Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson will be helping the city in this endeavor.
Earlier this month, Cebu City Hall approved MPTC’s unsolicited proposal to construct a third Cebu-Mactan bridge.
Unfinished
In its original proposal, the MPTC initially wanted the bridge to be located near the Cebu South Coastal Road viaduct. But Rama wanted the bridge’s Cebu terminus to be constructed at the mouth of the Guadalupe River.
This will be part of the negotiations that MPTC and the city government will decide on as part of its terms and conditions for the public-private-partnership project.
Fernandez said they were approached by Rama to help in the master plan for the Guadalupe River.
“We have to visually inspect the area first before we can talk about a timetable. It was the mayor’s idea, as an unfinished business of his, and he asked us to help,” he said.
Fernandez said they hope to start and complete the master plan within this year.
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