Former senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito said on Monday expressed belief that an efficient railway system in Mindanao will boost the region’s potential to be an agricultural hub.
Ejercito, who is seeking a Senate comeback in the upcoming May 2022 polls, said improving Mindanao’s infrastructure will greatly help bring the best out of the island’s vast natural resources.
“We just have to put the necessary infrastructure so we can tap and maximize the full potential of Mindanao to be the fruit basket not only of the Philippines but of Asia,” Ejercito said.
According to the former lawmaker, Mindanao is truly gifted with natural resources.
“Abundant and very rich ang soil ng Mindanao (Mindanao is very abundant and its soil is very rich),” he further said.
Ejercito said constructing an efficient railway system in Mindanao will not only improve the delivery of agricultural goods but also reduce poverty and deter armed conflict on the island.
“Malaking bagay kaya kung maisama pa natin ang railway system dito, nako, talagang sisigla, uusbong ang ekonomiya ng Mindanao (It would be a good thing if a railway system is in place here, Mindanao’s economy would be vibrant and its economy will flourish),” he said.
“Mawawala na rin, sa tingin ko, ang kaguluhan dito in the next decades (Conflicts would also be eradicated in the next decades, I think),” he said.
Ejercito has repeatedly called for the construction of the Mindanao Railway System to promote economic development in conflict-ridden areas and “pave the way for genuine and lasting peace.”
The former senator has also been advocating for infrastructure development since his first term in the Senate.