Cordillera peoples army faction hastens government projects

CORDILLERA Peoples Liberation Army (CPLA) chairman Arsenio Humiding is fast-tracking the implementation of projects in the region.

Humiding called a command conference last September 13 at Conner, Apayao to assess the progress of the downloaded projects under the Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (Pamana) given by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (Opapp).

Humiding identified problem areas as Kalinga, Ifugao, and Mountain Province.

In Kalinga, there is zero implementation of the Pamana projects due to the impasse between the CPLA and the local government unit.

During the conference, Humiding said the primary hindrance to the implementation of the projects is coordination to the local government units, a miscommunication to CPLA peace partners, an acceptance to the Opapp–CPLA agreement, as well as from the very CPLA leadership.

The Opapp has released P264 million for the first wave of projects for the CPLA. The closure agreement states there are community development and livelihood projects to be implemented in 57 identified communities from 23 municipalities in the six provinces of the Cordillera in the next two years.

The government procurement law has set back projects by months and from the very ranks of the CPLA leadership as well, where there is an overwhelming of leaders on how to handle the projects.

Humiding said there are less than nine months left in the two-year span of the projects.

For the first phase of the Pamana projects there are a total of 39 implementable projects in the Cordillera. (Ma. Elena Catajan)