San Fabian, Pangasinan, the old US bases, and Filipino military camps
Published Sep 23, 2018 12:05 am
PEACE-MAKER
By JOSE C. DE VENECIA, JR.
FORMER SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
Jose C. De Venecia Jr.
We were in our home province of Pangasinan in the town of San Fabian last week, in our old 4th congressional district along the South China Sea, where in the next months San Miguel Corporation led by Chairman Eduardo Cojuangco and President Ramon Ang have scheduled large-scale construction of the beginnings of what could eventually be a satellite city: an agro-industrial complex, seaport, a commercial and tourism belt, grains terminal, feedmill, etc.
Construction could begin as early October-November, a big boost for this seafront convergence area between Central and Northern Luzon.
In San Fabian, Ramon Ang has lined up for construction: a San Miguel Brewery, Cement Grinding Plant, Pier and Jetty, Petron Tank and LPG Farm, Grain Terminal, Feedmill, Poultry Processing Plant, Slaughterhouse, Restaurants for Tourists/Residents, a Diamond Hotel, Recreation and Commercial Center, in more than 80 hectares from the coast to the foothills leading to the Cordillera and to Baguio City.
San Fabian is nearby the miraculous town of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Manaoag where hundreds of thousands of pilgrims converge every year. Not far away is commercially active Dagupan City, also along the coast, and further westward, are the tourism-busy Hundred Islands in the city of Alaminos.
The San Miguel complex will also link with the coastal boulevard extending from Barangay Bolasi, San Fabian, to Tondaligan, Dagupan City, already being built by Rep. Christopher de Venecia assisted by Dagupan City Mayor Belen Fernandez and San Fabian Mayor Constante Agbayani on the San Fabian side. They are assisted by the active provincial Governor Amado Espino III and Presidential Assistant Raul Lambino.
The bayfront from San Fabian to Dagupan City extends to the coastal towns of Binmaley, the capital Lingayen and links with Sual, and Alaminos City of the Hundred Islands under prospective gubernatorial candidate City Mayor Arthur Celeste.
In Alaminos City, China’s active industrial Xianglu Dragon Group from Xiamen City, Fujian, hopes to build an international airport, to link with the potential international seaport in Sual, although the latter two dream projects are still in the feasibility stage.
On the other hand, active San Miguel’s ready-to-roll initiative in San Fabian heralds Pangasinan’s long-neglected push to industrialization, which, in a bipartisan effort, is being pushed by President Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Leni Robredo along with Pangasinan’s five members of Congress, mayors and leaders, representing various political groups. The San Fabian agro-industrial and development push is strictly a San Miguel private sector initiative, at no cost to the national, provincial or municipal government.
Further north, we are joining Finance Secretary Carlos Domiguez III in raising the issue why the US is not joining the development of its former Clark Air Base, at the time the US largest airbase in the Pacific, and where Chinese and Japanese companies are today currently active. The government had earlier said it could allot 300-500 hectares of land within the new Clark City for a planned industrial park hosting Chinese companies.
It seems a number of US firms submitted bids for the design of the sprawling commercial and industrial zone in the former area of Clark but did not bid for the development of the project itself. Reports indicate that the real estate value of the New Clark City is currently $14 billion and Dominguez has reportedly said the Duterte government has committed an additional P12 billion.
It would be admirable if the US firms actively participate in Clark’s continued development. The American people and tax payers have for more than a hundred years developed and sustained the US airbase in Clark and the former US naval base in Subic nearby, today both showcases of Philippine economic development.
We had the privilege with others to author the now successful Bases Conversion Law, which developed Clark, Subic Naval Base, Camp John Hay in Baguio City, Camp Wallace Station in La Union, and the Filipino military camps, Fort Bonifacio and Nichols Airbase, under one integrated law into free ports or special economic zones, industrial parks, and their emergence into de facto new satellite cities.
We are certain the Filipino people today would be honored and happy to see international investors-developers participate in the redevelopment of the old US military camps into major economic centers, as they are emerging today, with participation from Filipino, US, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Korean, European and ASEAN companies.
Jose C. De Venecia Jr.
We were in our home province of Pangasinan in the town of San Fabian last week, in our old 4th congressional district along the South China Sea, where in the next months San Miguel Corporation led by Chairman Eduardo Cojuangco and President Ramon Ang have scheduled large-scale construction of the beginnings of what could eventually be a satellite city: an agro-industrial complex, seaport, a commercial and tourism belt, grains terminal, feedmill, etc.
Construction could begin as early October-November, a big boost for this seafront convergence area between Central and Northern Luzon.
In San Fabian, Ramon Ang has lined up for construction: a San Miguel Brewery, Cement Grinding Plant, Pier and Jetty, Petron Tank and LPG Farm, Grain Terminal, Feedmill, Poultry Processing Plant, Slaughterhouse, Restaurants for Tourists/Residents, a Diamond Hotel, Recreation and Commercial Center, in more than 80 hectares from the coast to the foothills leading to the Cordillera and to Baguio City.
San Fabian is nearby the miraculous town of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Manaoag where hundreds of thousands of pilgrims converge every year. Not far away is commercially active Dagupan City, also along the coast, and further westward, are the tourism-busy Hundred Islands in the city of Alaminos.
The San Miguel complex will also link with the coastal boulevard extending from Barangay Bolasi, San Fabian, to Tondaligan, Dagupan City, already being built by Rep. Christopher de Venecia assisted by Dagupan City Mayor Belen Fernandez and San Fabian Mayor Constante Agbayani on the San Fabian side. They are assisted by the active provincial Governor Amado Espino III and Presidential Assistant Raul Lambino.
The bayfront from San Fabian to Dagupan City extends to the coastal towns of Binmaley, the capital Lingayen and links with Sual, and Alaminos City of the Hundred Islands under prospective gubernatorial candidate City Mayor Arthur Celeste.
In Alaminos City, China’s active industrial Xianglu Dragon Group from Xiamen City, Fujian, hopes to build an international airport, to link with the potential international seaport in Sual, although the latter two dream projects are still in the feasibility stage.
On the other hand, active San Miguel’s ready-to-roll initiative in San Fabian heralds Pangasinan’s long-neglected push to industrialization, which, in a bipartisan effort, is being pushed by President Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Leni Robredo along with Pangasinan’s five members of Congress, mayors and leaders, representing various political groups. The San Fabian agro-industrial and development push is strictly a San Miguel private sector initiative, at no cost to the national, provincial or municipal government.
Further north, we are joining Finance Secretary Carlos Domiguez III in raising the issue why the US is not joining the development of its former Clark Air Base, at the time the US largest airbase in the Pacific, and where Chinese and Japanese companies are today currently active. The government had earlier said it could allot 300-500 hectares of land within the new Clark City for a planned industrial park hosting Chinese companies.
It seems a number of US firms submitted bids for the design of the sprawling commercial and industrial zone in the former area of Clark but did not bid for the development of the project itself. Reports indicate that the real estate value of the New Clark City is currently $14 billion and Dominguez has reportedly said the Duterte government has committed an additional P12 billion.
It would be admirable if the US firms actively participate in Clark’s continued development. The American people and tax payers have for more than a hundred years developed and sustained the US airbase in Clark and the former US naval base in Subic nearby, today both showcases of Philippine economic development.
We had the privilege with others to author the now successful Bases Conversion Law, which developed Clark, Subic Naval Base, Camp John Hay in Baguio City, Camp Wallace Station in La Union, and the Filipino military camps, Fort Bonifacio and Nichols Airbase, under one integrated law into free ports or special economic zones, industrial parks, and their emergence into de facto new satellite cities.
We are certain the Filipino people today would be honored and happy to see international investors-developers participate in the redevelopment of the old US military camps into major economic centers, as they are emerging today, with participation from Filipino, US, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Korean, European and ASEAN companies.