Department of Public Works and Highways’ Mark Villar on build build build, his work ethic, and aspirations for the senate.

Building Vision

Mark Villar started his career as managing director for his family’s company, Vista Land and Lifescapes. He then became the congressman for the lone district of Las Pinas. And most recently, he became Secretary for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

At the helm of the DPWH, he was able to successfully build the vision he and his team boldingly promised the Filipino people. And he has the numbers to prove it.

“In the past five years, the DPWH has completed a total of 29,264 kilometers of roads, 5,950 kms of bridges,” shares the quiet secretary, “Of these, 2,025 kilometers are farm-to-market roads, 94.99 kilometers are farm-to-mill roads, 1376.26 kilometers are missing links, 1,470.51 kilometers are bypasses or diversion roads, 149.65 kilometers lead to airports, 293.19 kilometers lead to seaports, 703.54 kilometers lead to economic zones and 2,436.40 kilometers lead to declared tourism destinations.”

Beyond linking the country’s industries together, the senatorial aspirant also cites the 11,340 flood control projects, 222 evacuation centers, 133 ‘Tatag ng Imprastraktura Para sa Kapayapaan at Seguridad’ (TIKAS) projects and 150,149 new classrooms that students can now learn in. “Infrastructure spending has increased two-fold compared to the past six administrations. On the average, infrastructure spending from 2016-2019 was at 4.9 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), more than double the 2.4 percent average infrastructure spending in the last fifty years.”

Not even a pandemic halted the Secretary Villar’s progress, as proven by the completion of 739 flagship We-Heal-as-One-Centers. “These centers are either mega community quarantine facilities, isolation facilities, off-site dormitories, or modular hospitals with a total capacity of 27,302 beds” explains the young secretary. He asserts that productivity at the DPWH had to remain high not just in spite of the pandemic, but BECAUSE of it. "It was important for us to complete the Build Build Build projects in the fastest timetable possible and prime the pump for the economy.” He states.

Indeed, since 2016, Secretary Mark has worked hard to bring about “a “Golden Age of Infrastructure” for the Philippines, creating not just structures but, as well— 6.5 million jobs from (and for) the administration’s Build, Build, Build Program. “(The DPWH’s achievements) would not have been possible without the skill, work and sacrifices of so many Filipino workers,” expresses the low-key Secretary, who has for his part ensured that the labor of brick-and-mortar layers, the expertise of highly-skilled Filipino engineers, and the billions of pesos from tax-paying citizens— did their job.

Reform Czar

“My first priority was to institute reforms,” recalls Secretary Mark, “The problem of right of way has hounded many infrastructure projects for decades.” Department Order No. 65, which brought about the creation of Right-of-Way Task Forces for each projects— solved this.

He explains that by decentralizing acquisition functions and delegating duties, the DPWH was better able to meet targets. The results of such speedy coordination is felt by some 20,000 motorists today, everyday. Secretary Mark cites the reduction of travel time from Valenzuela City to C3 Caloocan City, from an hour to a mere five minutes. As well “It took six presidents to complete Radial Road 10 (R-10). But in the first six months of the Duterte Administration, the right of way issues that hounded the project in the past were resolved in coordination with the local government units. Now, travel time between Manila and Navotas City is reduced from 1 hour to 30 minutes.”

Procurement issues were also tackled during Secretary Mark’s tenure, a bulk of which was dealt with with the issuance of Department Order No. 127 (series of 2018).

“We used a technology called the Infra-Track App, which has a built-in geotagging feature that plots photos inputted in the system for monitoring in the exact geographic coordinates where they were taken,” says the Duterte Administration’s construction czar, “the system automatically alerts us when a project is misreported from a different location. That’s one way of ensuring we have no ghost projects in the DPWH.” The move has since resulted in the blacklisting of 25 contractors for discrepancies detected by the system.

Secretary Mark notes programs he’s proud to have helmed (as evidenced by the occasional selfie). These include “the Luzon Spine Expressway Network Program, TIKAS Program, Tourism Road Infrastructure Program (TRIP), Roads Leveraging Linkages for Industry and Trade (ROLL-IT) Program, Kalsada Tungo sa Paliparan, Riles, at Daungan (KATUPARAN) Program, and the Agri-Infrastructure Support Program.”

It is said that the work reflects the man. In which case such herculean tasks say something about Mark Villar.

The Heart in the Dream

Often seen in pictures with his hard hat on, Secretary Mark reveals in a previous interview that he also bears a soft heart within— describing highways as babies he watches over from the time they are but sand and cement— to when they live bearing the billions of tons of people and machines that use them daily.

Countless hours of service, much like the man that helped build them.

“(Secretary Mark) is willing to work 18 hours a day to build infrastructure that would allow Filipinos to dream and hope for a better future.” Anna Mae Lamentillo states. “Some days, he wouldn’t even have the time to dry his hair or have breakfast, but I’d often notice that before leaving the house, he’d go to the room of Emma Therese – his two-year old daughter, first.”

Indeed, one of the chief considerations for Secretary Mark’s senate run is his own family.

While growing up and living a life of privilege, he is himself not immune to the everyday Filipino’s troubles with traffic. As he confides in another interview, it is his dream in the future to travel across a bridge, turn to his daughter and say “I helped build this.”

Yet his family is not just a reason for his run, but also an inspiration. “Behind a successful man is a strong woman. I’m so proud of my wife (Department of Justice Undersecretary Emmeline Yan Aglipay) for the strength and courage she shows in her battle against lupus. She’s an inspiration for me and the many others who are also affected by this condition. My wife and my daughter Emma have always been my source of strength.”

With election season some ways away, Secretary Mark reveals that it is his and his team’s vision to turn Build Build Build into Jobs Jobs Jobs— to institutionalize growth into inter-generational progress. And if Secretary Villar wins his seat in the senate, it might just be a case of Filipinos feeling the effects of progress, before ever even hearing about it.

—alike.com.ph

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