Boracay toilet project draws scorn of residents, tourists

A photo of a billboard on a government-funded toilet amounting to P4.98 million on Boracay Island has gone viral and has drawn criticisms and disbelief from Boracay residents and tourists

ILOILO CITY—Is it carpeted and air-conditioned? Is the toilet bowl made of gold? Will snacks be served?

These are some of the reactions of residents and tourists on Boracay Island over a toilet project of the local government costing nearly P5 million.

Residents who have frequently aired gripes of worsening flooding along the main road of the island, traffic congestion and inadequate drainage system have targeted the project on social media.

“I wish they have the same budget for roads, (addressing) floods and waste,” said a resident in a post in one of the island’s community social media page.

Many of the criticisms were posted on Dec. 24, at the height of flooding on the island which long-time residents considered the worst to have hit the popular island-resort.

The “comfort room” project costs P4,980,000, according to a billboard erected at the project site along the beach in Barangay Balabag, one of the three villages of the 1,032-hectare island.

The INQUIRER could not reach Malay Mayor Ciceron Cawaling through his mobile on Wednesdayfor comment. Municipal engineer Elizer Casidsid did not reply to text messages and calls on his mobile phone.

A contact number posted on the billboard was also inaccessible.

The project, funded and implemented by the Malay municipal government, was scheduled to start on Dec. 8 and set to be completed on May 27, 2018.

The project is being undertaken by contractor Audric Construction & Supply based in Banga town in Aklan.

A perspective of the project superimposed in the billboard showed a two-story structure accessible to persons with disabilities.

But members of the Facebook community pages said the cost was too much considering that there are other pressing concerns that both the national and local governments should address.

“That’s already a (condominium unit),” one of those who commented said.

Various problems have persisted or worsened on the island amid the drive to draw in more tourists.

Tourist arrivals recorded a new high at 1,725,483 in 2016, 11 percent higher than the 1,560,106 tourists recorded in 2015, according to data from the Malay municipal tourism office and Department of Tourism in Boracay./asu