President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. has ordered the creation of an inter-agency committee that would oversee right-of-way issues affecting railway projects in the Philippines.
Based on Administrative Order No. 19 dated 25 March but was only released to the public on Tuesday, Marcos created the Inter-Agency Committee for Right-of-Way (ROW) Activities for National Railway Projects.
Under the order, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) will be tasked to head the panel alongside the head of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHUSD) as co-chair, of the committee.
Included in the committee are representatives from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Finance (DOF), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Justice (DOJ), and Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).
The Philippine National Railway (PNR) will act as the Secretariat of the Committee, offering administrative and technical assistance.
"The Inter-Agency Committee for ROW Activities for National Railway Projects (Committee) is hereby created to study and devise an efficient and collaborative mechanism to streamline the process of land acquisition necessary for the implementation of all railway projects," Marcos said in the AO.
According to Malacañang, the committee’s powers and functions include coordinating the implementation of railway policies and projects, crafting and approving project-specific policies and programs, and identifying the appropriate services or programs concerning land acquisition and other ROW activities, such as livelihood, income restoration, and resettlement.
"There is a need to constitute an inter-agency committee for ROW activities to accelerate the implementation of railway projects, and ensure the high-level cooperation and support from concerned government agencies to streamline the process of land acquisition and delivery of services,” it read.
"It will also identify effective existing policies, agreements, contracts, and other similar arrangements between and among government agencies, consolidate and mobilize agency resources to streamline budgeting, deliberate and resolve issues, grievance and create technical working groups to implement the order," it added.
The AO also noted that the committee may call upon the assistance of concerned government agencies and entities, as may be necessary in the performance of its functions.
The Order also directs the committee to submit a bi-annual report to the President “detailing, among others, the Committee’s accomplishments, and status of ROW acquisition activities for ongoing railway projects.”
There are at least 5 railway projects under the Marcos Jr. administration. These include the Metro Manila Subway Project, North-South Commuter Railway System, Mindanao Railway Project, Philippine National Railway and the South Long Haul.
