P3B allotted for highway tainted with WB graft tag
By Desiree Caluza
Northern Luzon Bureau
First Posted 01:46:00 12/18/2007
BONTOC, MT. PROVINCE—The national government has set aside P3 billion to complete the rehabilitation of the Halsema Highway and connect the provinces of Benguet, Mt. Province, Kalinga and Ifugao, according to Mt. Province Gov. Maximo Dalog.
Dalog said the completion of repairs on sections of Halsema, a vital artery connecting Cordillera provinces, would depend heavily on funds provided by President Macapagal-Arroyo, not on loans.
“No President has shown so much concern for the province [than Ms Arroyo],” he said.
The completion of Halsema’s rehabilitation would benefit farmers because it is the main road used to transport vegetables from Benguet and Mt. Province to Metro Manila and other lowland provinces. Local officials also hope the repairs will improve transportation and boost tourism in the region.
Ms Arroyo on Saturday was scheduled to inspect the rehabilitation of the highway’s 16-km stretch from Mt. Data in Bauko town to the capital Bontoc. She, however, cancelled her visit to the province that day.
Dalog said the government has set aside P340 million for the repair of that section, called Phase 2 of the Halsema Highway rehabilitation.
Last year, the World Bank cancelled an P800-million loan intended for the rehabilitation of the highway, leaving local governments looking for funds to shoulder the repairs.
Dalog said the national government would release an initial P700 million next year to rehabilitate the highway’s stretch from Bontoc to the City of Tabuk, the capital of Kalinga.
Dalog said Public Works Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. had promised to fast-track the rehabilitation of the Halsema Highway.
In October, Ebdane suspended government engineers blamed for the sloppy concreting of sections of the Halsema Highway.
He discovered that the materials used to build some sections of the highway were below the standards required for road strength.
|
