FALSE: Former president Marcos planned Skyway Stage 3

At a glance:

• Claim: Skyway Stage 3 was a plan of former president Ferdinand Marcos. 
• Rating: FALSE
• The facts: Skyway Stage 3 was a part of the Metro Manila Skyway System project that began during the Fidel V Ramos administration. The approval and the beginning of the construction of Skyway Stage 3 took place during the administration of Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. 
• Why we fact checked this: The claim was made in a Facebook post on the page “President Bongbong Marcos 2022” on January 16, 2021. As of this writing, the post has had about 2,300 reactions, 607 comments and 239 shares.

Complete details:

A post from the Facebook page “President Bongbong Marcos 2022” claimed on January 16, 2021: “Kailan pa naging project ni PNoy [dating pangulong Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III] ang Skyway Stage 3? Eh plano ni Ferdinand E. Marcos yan noon, na tinengga ni Cory Aquino, itinuloy lang ni [Pangulong Rodrigo] Duterte. Si PNoy puro plano, wala naman naipatayo!”

(“When did Skyway Stage 3 become a PNoy [President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III] project? It’s already a plan of Ferdinand E. Marcos before, which Cory Aquino put on hold, only continued by [President Rodrigo] Duterte. PNoy is all plan, without building anything!”)

As of this writing, the post has about 2,300 reactions, 607 comments and 239 shares.

The claim is false.  

The overall plan for the Metro Manila Skyway System originated from agreements and ventures that materialized from 1994 to 1995, during the Ramos administration. References to the 3 stages of the project were already there at the time.

The Supplemental Toll Operation Agreement (STOA) covering the Skyway project was executed on November 27, 1995 by the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), the Philippine National Construction Corporation (PNCC), and the Citra Metro Manila Tollways Corporation (CMMTC), which was a joint venture between the PNCC and the Indonesian firm PT Citra Lamtoro Gung Persada (CITRA). Ramos approved the STOA on April 7, 1996. 

The Skyway Stage 3 project was approved in September 2013 during the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III, with plans reportedly in place prior – during the administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.  It was launched on January 22, 2014 with expected completion in April 2017 or even the middle of 2016. 

However, right-of-way issues and delays, including one caused by a fire in Pandacan on February 1, 2020, caused postponements. San Miguel Corporation (SMC) said the project was eventually completed on October 13, 2020.  Skyway Stage 3 was partially opened on December 29, 2020 and was declared fully open on January 14, 2021.

The part of the post saying Noynoy Aquino did not put plans into action is also false with respect to the Skyway Stage 3 project. Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar said that when President Rodrigo Duterte took over the presidency, Skyway Stage 3 was already 11% complete. Rappler reported on the progress of the Skyway Stage 3 project on June 5, 2015.

With the aid of CrowdTangle, the claim was also determined to be found in the public groups “PROTECT THE PRESIDENT DUTERTE”, “SOLID GROUP FOR THE MARCOSES”, “Marcos Duterte Youth Alliance (Official Group),” “Taga PAQUIBATO JUD KA KUNG…………”, and “24KDutert KFWIPB inc. Kilusang Filipino Walang Iwanan sa PagBabago ng Bayan.” Rappler has already fact-checked the group “President Bongbong Marcos 2022” for claiming that the Supreme Court said that all anti-Marcos textbooks are untrue. – Percival Bueser/Rappler.com

This article was written by a volunteer of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program, a 5-week exclusive and hands-on training on detecting, investigating, and verifying online misinformation and disinformation.

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one fact check at a time.