'Fast and sure': Metro Manila Subway groundbreaking set in Q4

MANILA – The government can break ground for the capital’s first ever subway in the fourth quarter of this year, illustrating how President Rodrigo Duterte is moving "fast and sure" on his infrastructure program, one of his economic managers said Tuesday.

The Metro Manila Subway, which is partly-funded by Japan, will be partially operational in 2.5 to 3 years, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade told an economic briefing in Tokyo.

"Before, sir, it's 'talk, talk, talk' and 'plan, plan, plan.' Now, it's 'build, build, build,'" Tugade said in the forum, which was aired on the budget department's Facebook page.

The government "advanced" the schedule of infrastructure by as much as 6 months, Tugade said. Up to 1,900 kilometers of rail will be constructed under the President's term, including one in Mindanao, he said.

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The Philippines in March signed a P51.3-billion loan agreement with Japan for the Mega Manila Subway, which will connect Quezon City to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and the FTI Terminal in Taguig City.

It is one of the flagship projects under the President's P8 trillion list, which also includes airports and roads.

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno told the same briefing that the government had "licked the problem of underspending," which held back infrastructure development in the past.

From January to April, government spending rose 29.4 percent, compared to the same period in 2017. Infrastructure spending alone rose 47.5 percent, Diokno said.

Actual spending of P782 billion in the first quarter exceeded the programmed P755.9 billion, a first in the country's history, he said.

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