Audacity for greatness

"Imagine the cost and size of these projects."

My friend, the political-economist Alex Magno calls it audacity.

 Alex is referring to Ramon S. Ang’s project, the P735.6-billion New Manila International Airport in Bulakan, the quaint and ancient fishing and farming town in Bulacan with a population of just 77,000. In the 16th century, Bulakan was the capital of both Bulacan and Pampanga provinces.

The project of San Miguel Aerocity Inc., the wholly-owned airport subsidiary of San Miguel Corp., does not just involve land development, and the construction and operation of an airport.

The long-term strategy includes the construction of no less than 22 expressways over a ten-year period or longer. The scheme is called the NMIA Integrated Multi-Modal Transport Network.

Ramon Ang’s Aerocity and multi-model transport network are so huge they would make the present NAIA irrelevant. He thinks the 625 hectares of NAIA should be redeveloped instead into a new business district, which plan will free up P2 trillion worth of prime real estate. The present 634-ha. Ninoy Aquino International Airport has a rated capacity of 25 million but services 31-million passengers.

Aerocity is designed to attract 30-million tourists to the Philippines, drastically lower the cost of travel within the archipelago (planes and passengers waiting for hours to land or take off at NAIA is expensive), and contribute up to P1.5 trillion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP or the total output of goods and services).

To me, the most important impact is that the Philippines will recapture its sense and spirit of greatness, the imagination and capacity to build grand things for the benefit of many, so that Filipinos during the next decade will proudly march in cadence, with the best of people in this world. Indeed, 500 years ago and until the 19th century, the Philippines was the center of the world and Filipinos were the envy of their neighbors in Asia.

The roads planned by San Miguel include a 10-lane 22-km elevated EDSA Expressway atop EDSA to ease traffic on Metro Manila’s main highway and of course deliver passengers to NMIA and back in just 30 minutes, a Bataan-Bulacan Airport Expressway, Bulacan-Tarlac Airport Expressway, a San Jose del Monte to San Jose, Nueva Ecija Expressway, an MRT 7 to NMIA Expressway, and various expressways connecting NMIA to Balintawak, Sgt. Rivera, Buendia, Anda Circle in Manila, Lawton (BGC), Tramo (Pasay), Mall of Asia (Pasay), San Pedro and Calamba (Laguna), Tagaytay (Cavite).

The expressways will cover as far north as Laoag (Ilocos Norte) and as far south as Matnog (Sorsogon). They will converge at the food and transport hub in Pandacan, Manila which connects to SLEx Skyway Stage 3. The road network combines with an MRT 7 railway, now under construction from North EDSA to San Jose del Monte in Bulacan, and an even longer railway, from Tutuban to Bicol.

In other words, RSA will build an expressway loop from north to south, west and east of Luzon, easily a distance of more than 1,000 kms. and back, by connecting major airports and ports, from Poro Point in La Union to Bataan, Subic in Zambales to Clark in Pampanga and Tarlac, to Port Area Manila, NAIA in Pasay, Batangas port, and Matnog.

RSA will be redrawing the road network of Luzon, creating new business districts, industrial estates, commercial areas, and residential districts, in the process redistributing population, agriculture, industries, jobs, and economic opportunities. The cost, scale, scope and supporting road, rail and coastal network of the Philippines’ future gateway airport are so mind-boggling only a man of RSA’s guts and audacity could possibly think of it and dare to pursue it, not matter the problems and the challenges.

I first learned of the word audacity from the late Ferdinand E. Marcos, once considered the most bemedalled Filipino soldier and the ultimate politician warrior and empire builder (If you believe Imelda, the family once owned the major corporations in the country). FM quoted Napoleon on l’audace.  The French conqueror’s battlecry was “audacity, more audacity, always audacity” (“de l'audace, encore de l'audace, toujours de l'audace”).    In battle and in war, one must not hesitate because if one hesitates, one loses the battle, and having lost the battle, one loses the war.

The original quote is attributed to French revolutionary George Jacques Danton, “de l'audace, encore de l'audace, toujours de l'audace” to save the fatherland.  Danton was later guillotined.

General George S. Patton also subscribed to the strategy of audacity as did President Barack Obama.

RSA’s airport is audacious for its size and cost.

The first phase of NMIA alone will have two independent parallel runways (2.6-km to 3.5-km long) that can handle 80 aircraft movements per hour, two taxiways, and annual capacity of 35-million passengers. It will have three aprons suitable for 80 aircraft gates or stands. The terminal building will have a footprint of 16.5 hectares plus a cargo terminal of 3.5 hectares footprint. First phase will have 3+3-lane access road, expandable to 6+6 or 12 lanes.

With NMIA’s first phase is an 8-km toll road from NLEX to Bulakan, Bulacan.

The second phase increases capacity to 60 million (at 92 movements per hour) and is triggered once arrivals hit 21 million annually. The final phase is 100-million passenger capacity with rated runway capacity of 105 movements per hour.

When fully completed after six years, NMIA will have four runways, at least five taxiways, and three passenger terminal buildings.

San Miguel Aerocity is given six years to complete the airport, Phase I. Ramon Ang promises to do it in four years. The airport proper will sit on 2,500 hectares of area. But with an expressway loop connecting a total of 21 major roads, the right of way coverage could extend to 10,000 hectares.

RSA is given 18 months to raise financing for Phase I, about P550 billion, 70 percent and 30-percent equity. He plans for 80/20 debt-equity ratio.

RSA feels that the Philippines is on the verge of a major tourism boom and attract tourists a third of the size of its population of 107 million.

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