DEFENSE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana yesterday said the repair of the dilapidated runway on Pag-asa Island in the contested West Philippine Sea (WPS) in the South China Sea is nearly complete.
Lorenzana said workers are hoping to finish the repair by June 30 when President Duterte finishes his six-year term, though he did not rule out the possibility that the work will be extended until July or August.
In February, Lorenzana said the repair of the runway was 25 percent complete.
Lorenzana said workers are in the process of cementing the runway so it can be used by aircraft anytime.
The 1.3-kilometer runway used to be made from corals and posed danger to aircrafts that land during inclement weather.
“At present, the airport is being cemented so that our aircraft can land there anytime, any day because at present, our aircraft cannot land there if it’s raining,” Lorenza told a radio interview.
Construction materials used for the repair are transported by vessels through a beaching ramp in the island that was completed in 2019.
“Once its completed, we can go there every day,” said Lorenzana, referring to Pag-asa Island, the largest among the eight features that are occupied by Filipino troops in the WPS.
The WPS is being claimed in part or in whole by Philippines, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. China has been aggressive in its claims over the past years and has conducted land reclamation in some of the reefs it is occupying.
Lorenzana said the military will focus on improving the facilities in the other features occupied by Filipino troops after the runway on Pag-asa Island is finished.
Meanwhile, Lorenzana sought to downplay reports about ongoing Chinese constructions of additional facilities at the Chinese-occupied Subic Reef which is about 14 nautical miles from Pag-asa Island.
Lorenzana said there is a standing arrangement between Philippine and Chinese governments that constructions can be pursued in areas that are occupied by the two countries.
“That’s one of the agreements reached by the two countries. We can improve our occupied features as long as we do not occupy new features,” said Lorenzana.
“They (Chinese) are not doing it in new features. They are not also prohibiting us from constructing in our features,” said Lorenzana, implying the Chinese construction are alright “as long as they are not occupying new features, sending people to unoccupied features.”
