Maasin City, Southern Leyte
July 02, 2018
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte graced the 58th founding anniversary of Southern Leyte province at the Provincial Capitol Grounds in Maasin City.
In his keynote address, the President acknowledged Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade for the successful construction of the new passenger terminal building of the Maasin Airport, the only airport in the province of Southern Leyte.
Earlier in the day, Secretary Tugade led the inauguration of the said infrastructure project that allows the airport to accommodate 300 passengers daily or about 100,000 travelers per year. The DOTr would also upgrade the Maasin Airport from being a community airport to a standard principal class 2 airport through the construction of additional amenities that have all been bid-out last June 14, 2018.
Furthermore, President Duterte cited brief updates on the ongoing rehabilitation of Boracay Island in Aklan, with the guidance of Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Roy Cimatu and Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año.
“Just let me clean Boracay… Told them to clean it and it’s halfway done, so when it’s complete, since Boracay is classified as forestal/agriculture, I have already initiated land reform sa likod,” said the Chief Executive, adding that he plans to give back the island’s ownership to its original inhabitants.
At the end of his speech, President Duterte called on all the attendees for their continuous support in transforming the country into a progressive and prosperous nation. He also expressed his pleasure in gracing the celebration, as it gave him an opportunity to visit his birthplace and former hometown.
“Together, let us sustain the gains of our reform, so that we may fully realize our aspiration of providing more dignified and comfortable lives for all kababayans,” he ended.
According to the local government of Southern Leyte, this year’s event is the first celebration attended by the President of the Philippines, not to mention President Duterte being a native of the province.
The President is born on March 28, 1945 in Barangay Laboon in Maasin City and baptized as a Roman Catholic at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption of Maasin. He took up his primary studies at the Laboon Elementary School.
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