Kalunasan residents fear riprap collapse

With the onset of the rainy season, residents of sitio Lokana, barangay Kalunasan voiced concern over the faulty riverbank riprap project in their area after a portion of it fell down due to a landslide last week.

Kalunasan barangay captain Nunilon Monares Jr. said no representatives from project contractor E.M Arante Construction showed up to inspect and repair the riprap which is reportedly in danger of collapse.

If a downpour occurs, Monares said the riprap would only give way, resulting in a flood that would sweep houses in their area.

One resident, whose house is located above the riprap spent P15,000 from his own pocket to build another riprap.

“His house might also collapse that’s why he spent for his own protection,” said Elizar Gabutan, president of the Lokana homeowners association.

The riverbank riprap projects amounting to P8.7 million in barangay Kalunasan remain unfixed even as the city government is scheduled to release payment to E.M Arante for some of the projects it implemented in other parts of the city.

Last year, former Kalunasan barangay captain Edelito Mabano admitted that they changed the specifications in the Program Of Works and Estimates (POWE) by using gabions instead of steel wires for the riprap project.

The Department pf Public Works and Highways (DPWH) confirmed that the the projects were substandard and recommended to have the contractor make substantial improvements on the riprap project.

E.M Arante Construction had yet to make these repairs. Despite this, the city’s Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) recommend to pay P8 million to E.M Arante for repairing road projects in the hinterland barangays of Sudlon I, Sudlon II and Borbon.

Former mayor and now Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district threatened to file charges against E.M. Arante Construction before the Ombudsman-Visayas if it receives the P8 million payment from the city government.

E.M. Arante Construction cornered most of the P182-million worth of projects funded by the city government.

Out of 36 barangays in the south district, 16 barangay projects were done by E.M. Arante construction amounting to P156 million.

Kalunasan’s road concreting project worth P3.3 million that was also done by E.M. Arante also remained unfinished.

Monares said their concrete road amounting to P3.3 million had not yet been finished because of the ongoing investigation by the city government.

Only half of the road had been done after the Commission On Audit (COA) questioned the project, he said.

The road project became controversial after the water piping program had been realigned without approval from the barangay council.

City Hall formed a committee to investigate the projects but Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama had yet to receive the report.