Just days before he assumed the Presidency, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte unveiled a mammoth master plan for a P39-billion Davao Coastline and Port Development project.

A joint venture agreement was signed June 21 by the Davao City government and Mega Harbor Development Corporation. The project covers 200 hectares from the existing Sta. Ana Wharf to the Bucana area, where the Davao River flows out to the gulf.

Under the plan, Mega Harbor will begin with the reclamation of four islands. The first of the four islands will host a modern port with berthing length of 2.5 kilometers.

The second and third islands will be devoted to mixed-use components. The City of Davao will get about five hectares for its own use. The three islands will be linked to the mainland by a common access road.

The fourth island will feature a residential component, including a relocation site for the affected settlers. It will have its own access to the mainland.

As things happen in Davao City, this huge undertaking is expected to progress very quickly. Mega Harbor announced the company would be complying with the necessary permits within the year. The project development group, meanwhile, is now completing its assessment of the traffic, social and environmental impact of the project.

This large project was approved by the City Council last April 12, as undergoing a Swiss Challenge where possible contenders could offer lower bids for the original proponent to match. The entire package will be completed at no cost to the city.

Residents that might be affected by the project will be offered relocation to medium-rise building to be constructed within the project area. The whole project will be organized on the theme of “Green Urbanism” and promises to be a world-class city.

The most notable thing about this project is that it was unsolicited.

The proponents built a design and proposed it to the City Council on a joint venture arrangement. The City Council, for its part, examined the project, looked at its environmental impact and the social costs of relocating the settlers to be displaced. Then they approved it, as simple as that.

This departs quite sharply with the method and policies associated with public-private partnerships during the Noynoy Aquino administration.

To begin with, no unsolicited proposals were entertained. This foreclosed any bright ideas that might emanate from the private sector.

Then, the Noynoy administration looked at the front-end revenues to be made from a PPP project. This was an oppressive inclination. It forced private investors to cough up huge sums for government’s share of the program, in most cases undercutting viability of the project or forcing consumers to pay for the exorbitant front-end costs.

It will do well for the bureaucrats of the Aquino era to look at this project in Davao City.

No front-end fees were paid government, only a share of the land to be developed. No additional costs were imposed that would have undermined the viability of the project.

The Davao project, hopefully, serve as the model of how things could be done from hereon.

source:  Philippine Star Column of Alex Magno