Cayetano: New Senate building now costs P31B

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano speaks before the media on Thursday, October 10, 2024. —Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — The updated price tag of and timeline for the completion of the new Senate building in Taguig City are both unacceptable, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano said on Thursday.

Citing a letter from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Cayetano said the projected cost of the building was now P31.67 billion, or P33.07 billion if the furniture and land were also included.

He was earlier tasked by Senate President Francis Escudero to oversee the review of the project, particularly its rising construction costs.

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“The cost estimate to complete the building is based on all information we have today without any design changes,” Cayetano said in a press briefing.

“The cost estimate to complete the building was updated with 2024 prices and it comes from various sources, suppliers, and consultants,” he added.

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But Cayetano said the proposed 36 to 48-month period to finish the building was unacceptable, noting it would take just as long to construct a new building.

According to him, he asked the DPWH to reconsider the construction schedule, which excludes aesthetics and interior fittings, among others.

Cayetano also reported that the project’s Revised Detailed Architectural and Engineering Designs were only finalized last month.

He noted that before he took over supervision of the project as Senate accounts committee head, the new building did not even have a set price nor final engineering and architectural plans.

Too long

“It’s only now that we have a timeline and overall project cost, but the timeline of three to four years is unacceptable,” he said.

Cayetano said that like him, Escudero also found the P31.6-billion building cost or P33-billion total project cost too much.

He said his committee was working on forming a new Senate coordinating team to streamline internal processes and asked the DPWH to do the same.

“We’re going to put up a new Senate coordinating committee because there are a lot of, for lack of a better word, red tape, too many people and too many levels. But we’re asking the DPWH to mirror what we’re doing,” he said.

Cayetano said the main goal was to bring down the cost significantly without compromising quality and safety.

The undetermined cost of the project was one of the issues that became contentious between Cayetano and Sen. Nancy Binay, the former head of the accounts committee.

Cayetano launched an inquiry on July 3 after Escudero decided to suspend the project, citing the surge in the building’s price tag from P8.9 billion to P23.3 billion.

Binay, however, maintained that the building’s cost was P21 billion at that time.

The DPWH later confirmed that the total estimated cost might reach between P25 billion and P27 billion, with inflation and the current prices of construction materials factored in.