FACT CHECK: Ex-president Marcos didn’t provide blueprints for Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge project

Claim: A video claims that the blueprints for the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge (BCIB) project came from former president Ferdinand E. Marcos.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim can be found in a video uploaded by the YouTube channel “PINAS NEWS INSIDER” on April 11. As of writing, the video has already had 199,416 views and 5,500 likes.

The video says the late dictator’s son, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., will continue his father’s blueprints for the bridge-tunnel project linking Bataan and Cavite.

The Facts: The idea for the project was first pitched by former Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority chair Felicito Payumo in 1987 during his first term as Bataan representative, according to an Inquirer.net report and documents provided to Rappler by Payumo’s daughter Aileen.

By that time, the elder Marcos had been overthrown from the presidency through the 1986 People Power Revolution.

The project, initially named the Trans Manila Bay Crossing, aims to connect Bataan, Corregidor, and Cavite across Manila Bay to reduce inter-regional travel time and link the special economic zones in Regions 3 and IV-A. Payumo revived the idea in 2016 to “push growth” outside Metro Manila and address the traffic crisis.

Duterte’s BBB program: The approval and design for the bridge began under the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte. No official statements or reports credited the former president for any part of the project.

The BCIB was among the infrastructure projects listed under the Duterte administration’s Build, Build, Build (BBB) program in 2019. In January 2020, the National Economic Development Authority approved the P175.7 billion project, which will connect Barangay Alas-asin in Mariveles, Bataan to Barangay Timalan Concepcion in Naic, Cavite.

In October 2020, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) signed a $59 million contract for the BCIB’s engineering design. As of March 2023, the design was 70% complete, according to a BusinessWorld report citing DPWH Secretary Emmanuel Bonoan. 

Now transitioned into the current Marcos administration’s “Build Better More” program, construction of the bridge is slated to start in early 2024.

Not a Marcos Jr. idea either: This is not the first time that the idea for the BCIB project has been falsely credited to the Marcoses. Rappler previously published a fact check disputing claims that the BCIB began under Marcos Jr.’s term.

The YouTube channel spreading the claim, PINAS NEWS INSIDER, has also been the subject of previous Rappler fact-check articles. The channel was the source of misleading videos, such as a false claim that Marcos Jr. planned to shut down the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, and Vice President Sara Duterte intended to abolish the K-12 program. – Kyle Marcelino/Rappler.com

Kyle Marcelino is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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