LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, July 20 (PNA) — The provincial board here approved on Monday (July 20) the loan agreement of the province with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) in the amount of P758,149,708.38 to fund various infrastructure and development projects in Pangasinan.
This was provided for in provincial ordinance 28-2015 that ratified the sub-loan agreement and other supporting documents pertaining to the loan entered into by and between the provincial government of Pangasinan represented by Governor Amado Espino Jr. and the LBP represented by its head, Pangasinan Lending Center manager Jaime Cruz Jr.
The projects to be funded by the amount include the asphalting/blacktopping/concreting of provincial roads, reconstruction/replacement of damaged/old provincial/barangay bridges, purchase of hospital/heavy equipment, construction/rehabilitation/repair of hospitals, construction/rehabilitation of communal, pump and shallow tube well irrigation system, acquisition of hospital equipment and quality control equipment, and acquisition of brand new water well drilling rig mounted in truck.
According to provincial accountant Arturo Soriano, the projects now await the approval and recommendation of the Monetary Board.
They are in accordance with the approved local development plan and public investment program for calendar year 2014 or the annual public investment program for the current year 2015 of the province, he said.
The term of the loan is 10 years, to be paid quarterly at 5.5 percent fixed interest rate “for three years subject to quarterly repricing from 4th year onwards based on prevailing prime rate plus minimum spread of 1 percent.”
The ordinance noted that the provincial government of Pangasinan has applied for a loan drawdown from the approved Omnibus Term Loan Facility 2 from the LBP to finance all these projects.
The loan was already approved by the Loan Approving Group of LBP and the Governor was authorized by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to enter into a contract/loan agreement with LBP, the ordinance stated.
The amount will be taken from the original P1 billion approved term loan of the provincial government with the LBP.
Last year, the provincial government and the LBP held a loan signing agreement for the loan amounting P1-billion, as Pangasinan was cited by LBP for having a good paying status.
Soriano noted that the debt service or borrowing capacity of the province as allowed by the Bureau of Local Government Finance is P2.4 billion but only availed of P1 billion.
He added that the P1-billion loan is just enough and will not affect the provincial government’s statutory obligations like salaries of their employees. (PNA)