THE House of Representatives approved on final reading a bill that will grant San Miguel Aerocity, Inc. the authority over the construction and management of an airport and an adjacent “airport city” in Bulacan.
With 218 lawmakers voting yes to the measure and six who voted no, House Bill 7507 was approved on third and final reading based on plenary proceedings notes provided to the media on Monday.
The bill not only grants San Miguel Aerocity a franchise to construct and operate a domestic and international airport in Bulacan, but will also allow the company to develop and create a so-called airport city nearby.
The franchise will be in effect for 50 years from the effectivity of the act, inclusive of a 10-year maximum period for the design, planning, and construction of the airport and the airport city, “unless sooner revoked or cancelled,” the bill read.
The grantee is also ordered to operate and maintain the airport city “in a satisfactory manner at all times” and “shall conform to the ethics of honest enterprise and not use the airport for subversive and treasonable acts.”
On Aug. 27, the House ways and means committee approved a seperate bill (House Bill 7241) that will exempt the grantee from taxes during the 10-year construction period.
San Miguel Aerocity is a subsidiary of San Miguel Holdings Corp.
Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene D. Brosas, who was one of the six who voted against granting the franchise, said in a statement on Monday that the airport will affect 700 families, mostly fisherfolk, who reside in Brgy. Taliptip in Bulakan, Bulacan.
She said the project could threaten our country’s food security as P30-million worth of fishery and marine products will be affected while 24.5-hectares of mangroves will be destroyed. — Gillian M. Cortez
