- CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Department of Public Works and Highways Negros Occidental 2nd District Engineering Office said its contractors will start the construction of P25 million in projects in Moises Padilla town this week.
District Engineer Rolando Valdez, in his letter to Mayor Ella Celestina Garcia-Yulo, said that these projects, under the 2022 Basic Infrastructure Program, include the construction of a multi-purpose building in Barangay 5, worth P5 million; rehabilitation of a two-classroom school building at Magallon Cadre Elementary School, P5 million;
Rehabilitation of the two-classroom building of the Guinapana-an National High School Arum Extension and another two classroom edifice of the school at its Agogolo Extension, both in Barangay Macagahay, at P5 million each; and improvement of road in Barangay 6 Poblacion, also worthy P5 million.
The local government unit, in a Facebook post Feb. 15, said the realization of the five big projects was through the office of 5th District Rep. Marilou Arroyo-Lesaca.
Meanwhile, the DPWH said it completed 582 infrastructure projects in 2021 that are now benefiting about eight million residents in Western Visayas, and Secretary Roger Mercado said this is a remarkable achievement considering the challenges brought upon by the pandemic in the construction sector and the onslaught of Typhoon Odette in December.
DPWH Regional Office 6 director Tiburcio Canlas said the region received a budget allocation of P38.83 billion to fund a total of 1,523 projects, including the 8.73-kilometer of the 21.64-kilometer Boracay Circumferential Road that opened in December, and the 770-lineal meter Kalibo Bridge III in Aklan, worth P473.5 million, and is considered the longest concrete bridge in Western Visayas.
The DPWH also said it prioritized the expansion of the region’s capability to prevent the inundation of the more than 270 rivers in the region, and some 105 flood control projects that now protect residents, properties, and livelihood in the riverside communities of the region.
The agency constructed 22 isolation/quarantine facilities, 17 off-site dormitories, and four augmentation projects of existing evacuation centers, all with about 1,084 beds, that greatly support the region’s healthcare capacity in the continuous fight against the coronavirus disease.
“With 918 infrastructure projects underway and 23 more in the pipeline, we hope to catalyze further economic development in Western Visayas and contribute to its progress as one of the fastest growing regions of the Philippines,” Mercado said. — CGC
