Senator Franklin Drilon, on Tuesday, said the government should look at selling military camps such as Camp Aguinaldo and Crame to generate more funds to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
The senator gave Bonifacio Global City in Taguig as an example. BGC was Camp Bonifacio before it was sold.
“Ang laki ng contribution ng BGC sa ating ekonomiya. ‘Yan po ang halimbawa kung ano ang pwedeng gawin sa Camp Aguinaldo at Camp Crame,” he told radio DZMM.
(BGC has a significant contribution to our economy. That’s an example of what we could do to Camp Aguinaldo and Camp Crame.)
“‘Yan po ay hindi po theoretical. Nakita na po natin ang value of selling these military camps. Wala pong mapeperwisyo. Hindi po kailangan nasa gitna ng lungsod ang kampo ng military,” he said, citing that the Philippine Air Force was based in Pampanga.
(That is not theoretical. We have seen the value of selling these military camps. No one will be inconvenienced. Our military camps do not need to be in the middle of the city.)
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier said he would consider selling government assets as a last resort to fund government’s COVID-19 response in case “end game” comes.
“What is the endgame? Pag maubos talaga ang pera,” Duterte said. “Pag wala na akong makuha, and we’re about to sink and really sink, I will sell all the assets of the government tapos itulong ko sa tao.”
(What is the endgame? If the money runs out. When I can’t get any more, and we’re about to sink, I will sell all the assets of the government and use it to help the people.)
Duterte cited the idea of selling the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) or the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC).
Drilon, however, said selling PICC would not be ideal.
“Malaki po ang maintenance diyan, the ability to get a good price hindi po madaling gawin,” he said, noting that another convention center was located nearby.
(The maintenance is costly, and the ability to get a good price is not easy to achieve.)
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said the country’s cash was “sufficient” as of late April. The Philippines has so far spent P352.7 billion to fight the pandemic.