A new shelter port will soon rise on Lawak Island within the Kalayaan Group of Islands in the West Philippine Sea, fortifying the nation’s territorial defenses.
This after the House of Representatives has allocated a hefty P800 million to the Department of Transportation’s Maritime Transportation Infrastructure Program.
Makati City Rep. Luis Campos Jr., vice chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations, said Sunday that the additional funds were allocated in response to China’s unprecedented artificial island-building in the Spratly Archipelago.
Lawak is the second-largest landmass in the Philippine-administered Kalayaan Island Group, which is located in the northeastern section of the Spratly Archipelago.
It has a land area of 7.93 hectares and is located 157 kilometers east of Pag-asa, which has 37.2 hectares.
Based on the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative 2022 report, Beijing has developed at least seven artificial islands, creating 1,295 hectares (3,200 acres) of new land in the South China Sea since 2013.
According to Campos, the Philippines is already fast-tracking the establishment of transportation facilities in the Kalayaan Island Group, where boats, including those for fishing, can seek refuge via anchorages with access channels, breakwaters, and jetties, among other structures.
“The P800 million for the Lawak shelter port is on top of, and separate from, the P1.5 billion for the expansion of the airport on Pag-asa Island,” Campos said.
The HoR has vowed to finance the development and expansion of Pag-asa Island Airport to encourage civilian settlements in the area despite geopolitical tensions between the Philippines and China that have so far intensified.
The Kalayaan municipal government is based in Pag-asa.
The Kalayaan Island Group also includes Likas, Parola, Kota, Patag, and Panata, and the Balagtas Reef, Ayungin Shoal and Rizal Shoal.
In December, Speaker Martin Romualdez said a more significant chunk of the 2024 budget was allocated to security agencies such as the Philippine Coast Guard for a “robust defense” of the West Philippine Sea.