|
Saturday, March 29, 2003
Ombud to look into P550M Cebu road delay
By Karen M. Flores
CEBU -- After President Arroyo flared up due to the Naga-Uling road's state of disrepair, the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas will now look into the delays in the P550-million road repair project.
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Bayani Fernando yesterday clarified work has started on the road's "critical" portion, which is in the middle of the 34-kilometer stretch from Naga to Toledo City.
The contractor for this portion, which is in Lutopan, Toledo City, has started work using a P13-million budget from DPWH, and not the money from the loan with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).
But Gov. Pablo Garcia doubts the DPWH's claim. "What work? What we have now is an invisible highway…Maybe they are referring to our work there."
Garcia said the Capitol can do minor facelifts on the highway while waiting for the DPWH to start repairs.
While the road falls under the jurisdiction of the DPWH, Garcia lamented he has been constantly blamed for the neglect.
"Nasagmuyo pud kog apil. Ako'y sigeha'g dakdak sa mga tawo (I'm saddened too. People have been blaming me," the governor said.
Long overdue
Both the anti-graft office and the Capitol plan to send a team to look into the details of the project.
Arroyo's display of anger against DPWH officials, none of whom were present during her on-site inspection, highlighted her visit to Cebu last Thursday.
She was upset when she saw repair work on the road has not started yet. She visited Cebu was because she was informed the road has been graded and the contractor given an advance payment.
Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Primo Miro said the anti-graft office will conduct an inquiry on the status of the "long overdue" road project in Naga, Cebu.
"We will look into that. As a matter of fact, we should look into the developments regarding infrastructure," said Miro.
Ombudsman Director Edgardo Canton already received instructions from Miro about the inquiry.
The anti-graft office might form a team to look into the hitches the project has encountered and the other relevant details of the work.
They will check if a notice was posted in a conspicuous area to inform the public about the road project. Such notice would include when it was started, the target date of completion, the cost and other details.
Local funds
Garcia, meanwhile, will send a technical team to check what "work" has been started and on which part of the road.
But Fernando, in an interview with dyLA Friday, said the work being done in the middle portion of the Naga-Uling is from local funds.
The project funded out of the P550-million loan from JBIC will be bid out in October this year yet.
Though the loan is already available, he confirmed DPWH 7 Director Juanito Abergas' explanation that they cannot start the bidding process yet because they still need JBIC's concurrence on the criteria for the contractors.
"The project is basically to cement 1.7 kilometers of that road section. Its condition is so bad. The work will at least alleviate the condition of people using that area. We cannot wait for the Japanese money to start on this project," Fernando said.
In an earlier radio interview, Abergas said he and Undersecretary Salvador Pleyto did not go to Naga because Pleyto and the President already talked at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel.
Arroyo got angry when no DPWH official could explain to her the status of the project.
Inspection
According to Abergas, after Pleyto and Arroyo's conversation, the Presidential Management Staff reportedly told the undersecretary that he could already go.
Abergas confirmed they went to a "sutukil" restaurant in Punta Engaño, Lapu-Lapu City, to eat lunch.
They inspected some projects until 4:30 that afternoon.
When Pleyto was about to leave Cebu, Arroyo called him to inquire why the budget for the repair of the Transcentral Highway was not yet fully released.
Pleyto assured the President that he will attend to it immediately, but Abergas did not know if Arroyo scolded the undersecretary.
The bidding for the Naga-Uling road is scheduled on Oct. 30 and construction will start in April 2004.
The contractor has 24 months to work on the project so the target date of completion is 2006.
In the meantime, DPWH will be coordinating with the Provincial Government for repair works, especially at the critical portion.
Much as the Capitol wanted to work on major improvements of the road, it can only do so much pending major rehabilitation of the road by the DPWH.
Earlier, after learning that the President would be visiting the dilapidated road, Garcia sent two engineering task forces to the area for emergency repairs.
In fact, the heavy equipment Arroyo saw in some areas were those of the Province, Garcia said.
The Naga-Uling stretch used to be a provincial road. Fernando said he just signed two days ago the conversion of the road into a national highway.
Once the repair project is awarded, the project manager of the JBIC-assisted projects in the region will be supervising its works, and DPWH 7 is only tasked to coordinate. Sun.Star Cebu
(March 29, 2003 issue)
Want Sun.Star news on your mobile phone? Click here.
Write letter to the editor. Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board. Click here. |
|
|
|
 |
| click
to comment on this article or discuss it with other readers |
[return to top]
[home]
|
|
