Dateline Kamuning:   A portion of the unutilized road users’ tax of PHP82.2 billion can be used to improve pedestrian mobility in crowded areas of Metro Manila and other urbanized cities across the country. In a news release on Sunday, House Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto said the government should consider the construction of more sidewalks and bike lanes in its infrastructure program, adding that these “have been sidelined and waylaid” in the infrastructure menu for years. The construction of the pedestrian-centric pathways can be realized through the motor vehicle registration fees, whose unspent balance reached P82.2 billion as of 2021. “It is time to elevate wide pedestrian and bike lanes, whether ground-level or elevated, covered or not, to the league of major construction works,” Recto said.     He added that the improvement and construction of sidewalks and bike lanes should be programmed under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which has the power over the

  Dateline Kamuning:   The Philippines will review a “tripartite agreement” with its two close allies, the United States and Japan, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said Friday. In an interview with Japan’s Kyodo News, the President said one of the “many other issues” raised by the Philippine delegation in Tokyo is fostering alliances with its long-time partners. “It is something that we certainly are going to be studying upon my return to the Philippines. I think just part of the continuing process of strengthening our alliances because in this rather confusing, and I dare say dangerous situations, that we have, I’m not talking only about the South China Sea, I’m not only talking about the Indo-Pacific region but, of course, there is a conflict still ongoing in Ukraine and the rather disturbing effects that it has all around the world,” the President pointed out.    The chief executive said this is part of a “continuing and ongoing” process to make more “solid partnerships an

  Dateline Kamuning:   President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday underscored the importance of the support given by the Japanese government to the Philippines in undertaking the peace process, particularly in the Southern region of the country. In his speech during a courtesy call on the members of the Japanese parliament, the President thanked the government of Japan for its unwavering support to the Philippine peace process and countless development assistance. “It has been a critical part of our peace process. It is a process that we have been undertaking for many, many years and I think and finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, the participation of the Japanese support in that peace process has been invaluable,” President Marcos said. The President cited the Japanese government’s Japan-Bangsamoro Initiatives for Reconstruction and Development (J-BIRD) program, which involves long-term support for governance, decommissioning and socio-economic development.