Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Tuesday, March 19, 2024.

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READ: 'P170B rehab to wipe away NAIA's bad rep'

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday hailed the signing of a 170.6 billion peso deal with San Miguel Corp. (SMC) to rehabilitate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), saying he was confident this would wipe away the gateway's image as one of the worst in the world. During the ceremonial signing at the Palace, Marcos said the Private Public Partnership Project (PPP) is the "great catch-up plan" that should go beyond the airport's physical design and structure.

BUSINESS: Pasig expressway project scrapped

SAN Miguel Corp. (SMC) has abandoned plans to build the Pasig River Expressway (Parex), given strong opposition to the project by environmental and conservation groups. San Miguel wanted to build a 19-37-kilometer, six-lane and allelevated expressway that would traverse the Pasig River. As proposed, it would start at Radial Road 10 in the city of Manila and end at the planned South East Metro Manila Expressway in the town of Taytay in Rizal province. The direct link between the western and eastern parts of Metro Manila, the firm claimed, would help ease traffic on the metropolis' main highways of EDSA and C-5 and other roads by providing an alternative route for motorists. The project — estimated to cost 95.4 billion pesos with another P4.142 billion to be spent for acquiring right of way — was to be built by a joint venture between San Miguel Holdings Corp. and state-owned Philippine National Construction Corp. It would have added to the company's portfolio of toll roads such as the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, Southern Tagalog Arterial Road, South Luzon Expressway, Skyway System and NAIA Expressway.

READ: Poe warns of looming water interruptions

In other news, concerned agencies and water firms should prepare for the El Niño phenomenon to shield consumers from the effects of the looming dry spell, Sen. Mary Grace Poe said on Monday. The senator said the possibility of water interruptions created "a sense of déjà vu." The concerned agencies and water concessionaires should "have been prepared from the outset to ensure consumers would no longer suffer the nightmare of not having a drop from the tap," Poe said.

READ: House to vote on RBH 7 Wednesday

THE House of Representatives will vote on Resolution of Both Houses 7 amending certain economic provisions of the Constitution on Wednesday before lawmakers go on a Holy Week break. Deputy Speaker David Suarez said in a press conference on Monday that nominal voting with a roll call of lawmakers would be done. The 1987 Constitution allows the Congress to propose amendments to it "upon a 3/4 vote of all its members." Three-fourths of the House, which has about 300 lawmakers, is equivalent to about 230 lawmakers, but Suarez said more than 280 of them are co-authors of the resolution, guaranteeing its approval.

READ: China in agenda as Blinken meets Marcos

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is slated to meet with United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken today (Tuesday) in Malacañang, where they are expected to tackle, among other things, the escalating tension in the West Philippine Sea. The high-ranking U.S. official's visit to Manila is his second, the first being in August 2022, roughly two months after Marcos assumed the presidency and one week after US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo led the first U.S. Presidential Trade and Investment Mission to the Philippines. Blinken's brief stay comes after his participation in the Summit of Democracy held in Seoul, South Korea.

SPORTS: Eala stuns former world No. 5 Sara Errani

Over to sports, Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala advanced to the final round of the 2024 Miami Open qualifiers after shocking Italian Sara Errani 6-3, 6-1 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida on Monday, March 18 (Manila time). Eala banked on an impeccable service game in stunning the former world no. 5 and currently world no. 100 Errani as she moved one win away from entering the main draw. The 18-year-old Eala scored four service aces, five service games won, and tallied 32 service points against the 36-year-old Errani. In comparison, Errani, a nine-time singles champ and 29 doubles titlist that includes five Grand Slam doubles events, got zero aces, claimed one service game victory, and 12 service points only. Ranked 176th in the world, Eala also broke Errani's serve seven times while Errani could only break Eala's service game three times. Eala, a four-time champion in the professional circuit, said that this is the first time she has beaten a top 100 player and made the final qualifying round of a W.T.A. 1000 event.

READ: Opinion and editorial

Antonio Contreras, Yen Makabenta and Orlando Mercado are today's front page columnists. Contreras and Mercado discuss the controversial resort at Bohol's Chocolate Hills, while Makabenta wants the nation to observe Magellan Day, in honor of the explorer.

Today's editorial believes that having foreign schools in the country is not the solution. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

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