IN THE KNOW: Better uses for P583.5B spent on ‘wasteful projects’

The P583.5 billion that Sen. Panfilo Lacson said was spent on ‘wasteful projects’ could have funded the following instead:

— Rehabilitation of Marawi City and still have over P500 billion in extra money. The most recent estimate of the project is P80 billion.

— Construction of 785 modern hospitals in 81 provinces, 145 cities and 559 selected municipalities. This is based on the cost of a  modern Fabella Hospital being constructed in Manila at a cost of P743 million.

— Construction of more than 216,000 classrooms or 18,000 four-story buildings with 12 classrooms. This estimate is based on a document from the Department of Public Works and Highways in June 2018, which allocated P32.112 million for a four-story, 12-classroom building in Marilao, Bulacan. The four-story buildings could have been built in all cities, provinces and municipalities in the country.

— Construction of 1.21 million socialized subdivision homes. The Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council has set a price ceiling of P480,000 for a socialized subdivision unit with 22 square meters and with a loft of at least 50 percent of the base structure or 24 sq m. More than 3 million housing units are needed to be built for poor and homeless Filipinos between 2012 and 2030. —Inquirer Research