On his second day in Cebu, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon visited the City of Naga to inspect ongoing works for the Metro Cebu Expressway Project. 

Works on the 56.9-kilometer project was stalled after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued a cease-and-desist order, following incidents of erosion, and road surface dipping or sinking, in 2023.

In July 2025, roadworks resumed.

The project is deemed a backbone highway to reduce travel hours from the south going to the north, and vice versa, especially in Danao City, and to decongest the traffic on Natalio Bacalso Avenue (Cebu South Expressway). 

The project is divided into four segments. The segment marked “3A,” or the first segment, spans from Barangay Pandan to Barangay Cantao-an, both in the City of Naga.

The DPWH is working on the segment that stretches 4.5 kilometers since 2018.

Dizon inspected the roadworks morning on Wednesday, January 28, 2026. He met with the officials of DPWH Central Visayas, the project contractor, and a new consultant of the DPWH, Dr. Applegen Joyo, on the road rehabilitation, where interventions done were discussed briefly to avoid similar incidents of erosion, poor construction, and dipping of the road surface.

Dizon also sought a clarification from the contractor whether the completion of the first segment by June 2026 is feasible.

Meanwhile, the three segments from Minglanilla to Danao City are purportedly under the supervision of the Cebu Provincial Government through public-private partnership.

However, Dizon said he will seek a meeting with Cebu Governor Pamela Baricuatro, as DPWH would still want to be of help.

Dizon vowed to have payments for all affected families displaced by the project in the City of Naga settled.

On January 27, Dizon inspected again interventions done on a portion of Mananga River in Talisay City to pad a similar incident at the onslaught of Typhoon Tino.

Mananga River overflowed on November 4, 2025, devastating houses and shanties, and displacing over a thousand settlers.