By Erma Edera The plan to transform Manila’s Pandacan oil depot into a transport and food hub is already in the "final stage" of evaluation by the Department of Transportation (DOTr). San Miguel Corporation President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon Ang and Manila Mayor Francisco " Isko Moreno" Domagoso (PHOTO BY ALI VICOY/ MANILA BULLETIN) This was disclosed Thursday by San Miguel Corporation (SMC) President Ramon Ang who said that the proposal includes the building of at least 300 bus bays, a cold storage facility, and market. Ang said President Duterte and the DOTr “loved the idea of building the bus terminal in Manila” and have expressed interest in pushing for the project. Manila Mayor Isko Moreno said the hub is not expected to create traffic congestion in the city as buses will enter and exit through flyovers that are being constructed in the northern and southern portions of Manila. "It will never have traffic congestion. No one will pass below," he said. Ang said the proposed P10-billion transport and food hub will divert all provincial buses and delivery trucks away from EDSA to ease traffic in Metro Manila. The proposed development would be directly connected to the Skyway expansion project, allowing vehicles and trucks to bypass the already congested EDSA. The Pandacan oil depot used to house the storage facilities and distribution terminals of major oil companies such as SMC’s oil refining arm Petron Corp., Chevron Philippines Inc., and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. 'Better World Community' SMC also inaugurated on Wednesday "Better World Community," a feeding and education center in the heart of Tondo which will provide daily meals to children for the next 10 years. It is a joint project of SMC, Rise Against Hunger Philippines, and AHA Learning Center, which aims to provide the poorest barangays of Manila access to food as well as the tools to allow them to improve their lives. "Better World Tondo was a concept we’ve had for some time. We want to be able to collaborate with businesses and companies to collect excess food, store them in a food bank, to be served to those in need by community volunteers. It’s food rescue to address hunger, which is still a major problem for many sectors of our society,” Ang said. Ang said he wants to give back to the community where he was born and raised. "San Miguel is into food business so why don't we provide our children in Tondo a better place for them to try our products?" he said. Ang said the center will also be a learning facility that aims to help improve the lives of children of Tondo through skills building and values formation. "At the same time, it will be an educational place for them to learn while eating. We can entice them to dream of becoming somebody." The community center along R-10 road in Tondo houses a food bank, learning facility, and soup kitchen where meals are usually composed of rice, eggs and meat viands for children. They will also be provided with canned goods, fresh produce such as vegetables as well as cooked food. Domagoso, who was also born and raised in the slums of Tondo, said the feeding program will also help students do better in school. "I’m speaking based on my personal experience. Hungry children lose their focus on studies. I know what it feels like to come to school starving," he said. Ang said they are eyeing to build nine other food banks in the impoverished areas in Manila. "Let's try this for 10 years. If the outcome is good, we will continue," he said.