1st District Rep. Joseller “Yeng” Guiao said he will bring the issue to the proper committee in Congress as soon as he is furnished a copy of the Angeles City Council resolution seeking a probe into CDC’s projects at the main gate.
This, even as the advocacy group Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement has made its own appeal to Guiao and 3rd District Rep. Oscar S. Rodriguez to involve the Central Luzon congressional bloc and those in Northern Luzon in the inquiry “not only on Capilion but on the CDC and the Bases Conversion Development Authority.”
This, in “aid of legislation for the review of, if not amendments to RA 7227.”
Republic Act 7227 or the Bases Conversion Development Law that created the economic zones in the former US military bases.
“I have not received a copy of the resolution but as soon as I do, I will get the side of CDC before we bring the issue to the proper committee in Congress,” Guaio said in a text message when asked to comment on the issue.
It can be recalled that on August 25, the city council passed a unanimous resolution seeking a congressional inquiry on why the CDC has approved two projects at the main gate of this freeport, an area described by the council as a “no-build zone.”
The city council said among others that “the establishment of several tall buildings in that no build zone will restrict the growth of Clark International Airport” since “the establishment of buildings in the said area will contribute to the already the monstrous traffic jams almost daily being experienced by commuters on the nearby, particularly Don Juico Avenue, Fields Avenue that extends up to Macarthur Highway.”
The city council resolution was sponsored by Councilor Max Sangil who also sponsored Resolution 7184, Series of 2015 on June 2 expressing vehement opposition to any construction in the said disputed area at the Clark main gate.
Guiao said it was Sangil who verbally informed him on the City Council resolution.
Opposition
The PGKM is leading the opposition to the Capilion and HondaCars projects at the main gate.
The PGKM said the resulting monstrous traffic jams at this freeport’s main gate due to the Capilion and Honda Cars projects would be detrimental to the development of the Clark International Airport (CIA), a view cited by the city council in its resolution.
Capilion’s Clark Green Frontier (CGF) is expected to initially employ 18,000 workers and about 75,000 when it reaches its full capacity in about five years.
According to the CDC, the CGF will cover the development of two nine-storey commercial buildings, covering a total floor area of43,151.04 square meters within its 38,639 square meters of land in its Lease Agreement. It is diametrically opposite SM City Clark.
Economic disaster
The PGKM also said the establishment of the Capilion project would be an “economic disaster” since it would enjoy the perks and privileges of the freeport while other businesses located a spitting distance away would be levied with theusual business taxes.
The lease rates for the project are $2.05 per square-meter for its BPO offices and $3.10 per square-meter for its commercial, retail and hotel use.
CDC welcomes probe
Meanwhile the CDC said it welcomes the Congressional inquiry. In a statement, the CDC said “this would clarify that the Capilion project is located within the jurisdiction of the freeport and that the P7-billion investment project would be a boost to the economy.”
The CDC is also requesting all concerned to “be patient and allowtraffic experts from UP-NCTS (University of the Philippines – National Center for Transport Studies) to finish the Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) and complete the study.”
Excavation ongoing
But the PGKM has pointed out that while the CDC is asking for patience until the TIA is finished, the CDC has given the green light for the Capilion and Honda Cars projects as evidenced by the ongoing massive excavations on the property.
