Salceda: 8-lane highway in Albay ‘being finalized’

By Alan Tan

LEGAZPI CITY --- Albay 2nd District Representative Joey S. Salceda said an eight-lane highway from Daraga town to this city, which will be called a “Duterte road,” is being finalized by the Department of Public Works and Highways. Salceda made the disclosure on April 1 during the kick-off of the month-long basketball tournament dubbed First Albay Congressional Cup 2017 at the Albay Sports Complex in Bicol University (BU) here that was graced by PBA cage star James Yap, along with mayors and councilors of various towns in the province. Some 2,000 basketball players competing in the junior, senior and 40-year-old and above divisions from 46 teams from various barangays in Albay took part in the launch of the basketball competition. The Albay solon said the eight-lane highway, which will be constructed from Barangay Busay in Daraga and pass through Barangay Bogtong before winding up in Barangay Pawa in Legazpi City, will be called “Duterte Urban Traffic Reduction Road Network.” This will be called a Duterte road in Albay’s second district,” said Salceda. The second congressional district is composed of the towns of Camalig, Daraga, Manito and Rapu-Rapu and Legazpi City. He said that aside from the so-called Duterte road, he expects the Bicol International Airport whose groundbreaking was attended by the President early in December last year, to become operational by 2019. Salceda said Cebu Pacific will make BIA a hub to service its routes to Visayas and Mindanao. “Most of the planes of Cebu Pacific will be deployed at BIA which is still being constructed at Barangay Alobo in Daraga, Albay,” he said. The Albay solon added that in Congress he has pushed for free tuition fees at BU, the premier state university in the Bicol region located in this city that has an enrolment of around 20,000 students who come from various provinces in the region. Salceda said Albay Congressional Cup 2017 is the first among the six he will organize within the next nine years. James Yap of the PBA team Rain or Shine, who was recently cited as “PBA player of the week,” graced the launch of the congressional cup. “Practice and hard work has made me what I am now,” said Yap who added he was like most of the participants in the basketball tournament when he was just starting many years ago before he qualified to the PBA. He said “discipline and more prayers to God” are his secrets in having a successful basketball career. Present during the event were Mayors Jerry Jaucian of Daraga, Ahrdail Baldo of Camalig, Ann Ongjoco of Guinobatan, Herbie Aguas of Sto. Domingo, Ronald Galicia of Rapu-Rapu, Alan Arandia of Pio Duran, Cherry Sampal of Oas, and Legazpi City councilors Alan Ranola and Vince Baltazar III who led the pledge of sportsmanship. Sponsors of the 2017 congressional cup were Team Albay Youth Organization Inc. or TAYO, Junior Chamber International or JCI-Legazpi, Department of Health in Bicol, Globe Telecom, Boysen, First Colonial Grill, and McDonald. There are four divisions in the basketball tournament with first place winners in each division to receive P50,000, second place winners—P30,000, and third place winners—P15,000.