Marcos inaugurates Pasig River rehab project

MANILA, Philippines —  President Marcos yesterday led the inauguration of the “Pasig Bigyang Buhay Muli” project behind the Manila Central Post Office.

The urban development project seeks to transform Pasig River into a center of economic activity and promote transport connectivity in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

Its showcase area behind the post office, which was destroyed by a blaze in May 2023, spans almost 500 meters and will serve as a public park consisting of a pedestrian-friendly walkway on a concrete platform equipped with a water fountain accented by lighting.

The inauguration is part of the first phase of the comprehensive, multi-agency urban renewal project led by the Inter-Agency Council for the Pasig River Urban Development headed by Housing Secretary Jose Rizalino Azucar.

Acuzar said the project – expected to be completed in three years – costs P18 billion and would be funded through donations from the private sector.

About 10,000 informal settlers will be affected by the project but Acuzar said they would be assisted through the government’s housing program.

“For a river that has given us so much, we have given back too little. Our stewardship of this national asset leaves much to be desired, a national deficit which we have never properly erased,” the President said.

Marcos said the government and its project partners reject the “defeatist” view that the river is beyond redemption and are committed to transforming it into “a living river of multiple benefits for the multitude.”

Last year, Marcos signed Executive Order 35 calling for the “rehabilitation of the Pasig River to its historically pristine condition conducive to transport, recreation and tourism.”

First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos was also in attendance at the inauguration.