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'Drop dead,' Roque tells Duterte critics, as tunnel boring machine for subway arrives
'Drop dead,' Roque tells Duterte critics, as tunnel boring machine for subway arrives
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque told critics of President Duterte to '"drop dead", saying the Duterte administration will be making another mark in Philippine history with the country's first-ever subway.
Roque made the statement as he witnessed the arrival of the Cutter Head of ‘Kaunlaran’, the first among the six Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) intended for use in the partial operability section of the first underground railway system of the country.
In his speech, Roque said that while many critics continue to go after the President, the arrival of the TBM proves that Duterte is doing a good job.
"As you know, the President has many critics and they will not stop until they regain power," he said Friday.
"Let today's event be recorded in the annals of Philippine history as another first of the Duterte administration. And to his critics, I have only this to say: Manigas kayong lahat (Drop dead)," he added.
According to Roque, having a subway means the Philippines has a modern transportation system in the country and that President Duterte will be remembered for it.
"The arrival of this equipment is significant because it contributes further to what I have described as the renaissance of Philippine infrastructure," he said.
"Presidents will come and go, but in the annals of history, President Duterte will be remembered for the renaissance of infrastructure, for beating COVID-19, and of course, for all the social legislation that he so shepherded including Universal Health Care and Free Tuition in State Colleges and Universities," he added.
According to the Department of Transportation (DOTr), the Cutter Head is the largest part of the TBM, weighing 74 tons. Its main purpose is to break, cut and grind rocks and soil by rotating its 36-piece disc cutter, composed of 15 pieces of single and 21 pieces of twin Roller Cutter (RC).
The arrival of the first TBM Cutter Head signals the continuous arrival of the other TBM equipment and materials. The remaining parts of the machine are expected to arrive this month.
A total of 25 TBMs will be utilized for the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP). These machines will be used to dig underground and lay out the tunnels. They can excavate through a variety of ground conditions, from hard rock to sand.
The MMSP is the first underground railway system in the country that will provide the most modern mass transportation in the National Capital Region (NCR), from Valenzuela City to FTI, Parañaque, and Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA T3) in Pasay, and will further stretch across North and South zones of the Greater Capital Region.
The subway project is one of the centerpieces of the Duterte administration's "Build, Build, Build" infrastructure program. The Japanese government is providing foreign development assistance for the undertaking.
In December last year, Nikkei Asia reported that Japanese trading house Sumitomo Corp. and an East Japan Railway unit won a 57.5-billion yen order for train cars for the Philippines' first-ever subway system.