Wednesday, June 04, 2008 Floodwaters afflict Mambaling
A PRIVATE property in Sitio Manggahan, Bara-ngay Mambaling, Cebu City has become some sort of a pond due to lack of a drainage system, leaving some 30 houses standing in knee-deep floodwater.
City officials blamed the flooding problem on the sea wall and access road built on the property of businessman Vincent Go, a close friend of Mayor Tomas Osmeña.
Go reportedly built a sea wall to close off his reclaimed property from the sea. However, no canal or drainage was constructed, making it impossible for rainwater within the adjacent properties to flow out to the sea.
The flooded area is located just beside the Mambaling access road to the South Road Properties (SRP) and is adjacent to the University of Cebu-Mambaling campus.
Aside from the sanitation problem in the area, the flooding also poses health risks to residents since the area is suspected to be a breeding place for dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
The Gos were the ones who donated a P20-million property to the City, which was used as road-right-of-way for the SRP access road in Mambaling.
Osmeña said yesterday that he has already talked to the property owner, who assured that they will dig a canal and build drainage to address the problem.
Go is reportedly still in Canada but will come home later this month. The mayor said he was assured work will begin soon.
“The property owner is a good friend of mine. He’s a good friend because his family donated the road-right-of-way for the Mambaling access road. He said he’s going to build a canal and a drainage system, and I believe him,” Osmeña told reporters.
City Councilor Roberto Cabarrubias, who received complaints about the flooding from Mambaling barangay officials and affected families, said floodwaters sometimes get inside the houses there.
Without canals and a drainage outlet where water could pass through during heavy rains, the residents have no choice but to wait for the sun to dry the flooded area.
“The property of the Gos was closed off when the access road and the sea wall were built. There’s canal and drainage so water really could not flow out and floods the interior area instead,” Cabarrubias told reporters.
Garbage also floated on the water, posing health risks to the people in the community.
Osmeña has earlier threatened to demolish some houses in Mambaling to decongest the barangay, saying the area faces serious sanitation and health problems. (LCR)
