SENATOR Alan Peter Cayetano assured that he will fulfill his goal of delivering a quality New Senate Building (NSB) at the lowest possible cost.
During his recent attendance at a meet-and-greet event with Radio Mindanao Networks (RMN) station managers at the Golden Phoenix Hotel, Pasay City, Cayetano answered questions from the media about the project.
“It’s going to be a beautiful building, the concept is good. That’s why realistically there was a problem, because from as low as P8 billion, it [now] exceeds P30 billion,” said Cayetano.
As chair of the Senate Committee on Accounts overseeing the project, Cayetano emphasized the importance of transparency and promised to submit a comprehensive report to the Senate containing factual reviews and consultations.
“I will submit a comprehensive report because sadly it’s coming out the most expensive building in the Philippines, even more expensive than a five-star hotel,” he said.
According to Cayetano, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is expected to complete the plans in January 2025. He once again assured transparency and accountability in the entire process.
“We expect the DPWH to finalize by January at the latest. I promised to be transparent in the Senate so I will not hide anything. My role is to fix the plan. Fix it, get the senators to approve, then finish and put it up,” he said.
During the recently concluded Senate plenary deliberations on the DPWH’s proposed 2025 budget on November 20, 2024, Cayetano shared that his office received a letter from DPWH Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan saying that Phase 3 of the project may be completed in two or three years, depending on the speed of the bidding process.
“The DPWH Secretary just wrote to us that if all the bidding procurement goes well, it might take two years instead of four years… I think two to three years, it’s more than enough,” he said.
In order to lower the cost of the project, the senator also shared that recently there was an intensive meeting to review the design plans, get opinions, establish a realistic budget, and avoid increasing the cost of the project.
“Why do I want it finished? Because I don’t want to pass the accountability. I will not be held responsible for what happened before me, but hold me responsible for anything that happens when we took over until the end,” he said.
As the NSB project progresses, Cayetano hopes that transparency will help the public to restore trust in the project.
“I was assigned to look into it and fix it. My role here is to find out where we are, what happened, what’s wrong and what’s correct, and finish the building at the best quality at the minimum price,” he said.
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