THE Philippine government is spending an additional P3.03 billion this year to bolster its infrastructure buildup in the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) in the northeastern section of the disputed Spratly Archipelago.
“Congress has earmarked an additional P1.65 billion to develop the Pag-asa Island airport, plus P300 million for the (Pag-asa) shelter port,” Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel said in a statement on Sunday.
“We have also allocated an extra P1.08 billion to construct the second phase of the Lawak Island shelter port,” Pimentel added.
The three projects are fully itemized in the 2025 General Appropriations Law, according to Pimentel, who previously served as chairperson of the House committee on strategic intelligence.
“The P3.03 billion in new appropriations is in addition to the combined P2.3 billion allocated by Congress for the Pag-asa airport and the Lawak shelter port in 2024,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel is the author of a bill that seeks to transform Pag-asa into a recreational fishing tourism destination.
He is also the author of a separate bill that proposes an initial P5-billion appropriation to build new naval forward operating bases in the West Philippine Sea, primarily to secure the natural gas and oil deposits beneath the seabed.
Pag-asa lies 508 kilometers northwest of Puerto Princesa City.
With a land area of 37.2 hectares, Pag-asa is the largest island in the KIG.
Lawak, with a land area of 7.93 hectares, is the fourth-largest island in the KIG and lies 169 kilometers east of Pag-asa.
With an aggregate land area of 83.89 hectares, the KIG also includes the islets of Likas, Parola, Kota, Patag, and Panata.
The island group also includes Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal), Balagtas Reef (Irving Reef), and Rizal Shoal (Commodore Reef).
The Municipality of Kalayaan was created over the KIG under the Province of Palawan by virtue of a presidential decree issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. in 1978.
