House okays bill on barangay road development

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The House of Representatives recently approved a bill authored by Rep. Ronald M. Cosalan and Nueva Vizcaya Rep. Carlos Padilla mandating the Department of Public
works and Highways (DPWH) to embark on a 5-year comprehensive barangay road development project after the completion of the rehabilitation and upgrading of all national and secondary arterial roads by the middle of next year.
Cosalan, chairman of the House committee on public works, said the authors of the bill were elated after their colleagues passed the said initiative without going through prolonged debates, saying that government should use its available funds in order to improve the state of barangay roads which would pave the way for grassroots development in the future.
“We have to prioritize the development of our barangay road network because most of our over 42,000 barangays do not have the sufficient funds to improve roads within their jurisdiction. Government will have sufficient funds for such purpose because all national and secondary arterial roads shall have been improved once President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III steps down from office by the middle of next year,” Cosalan stressed.
The Benguet lawmaker underscored better barangay road network would significantly contribute in increasing economic activities that will translate to generation of jobs for the people and provision of sustainable sources of livelihood.
Further, he pointed out good roads will contribute in reducing the transportation cost of agricultural crops from the farms to the market thereby making the cost of food cheaper for the people.
According to him, issues on the use of available funds for the rehabilitation of city, municipal and provincial roads were raised during the committee hearings but most lawmakers believe that barangay roads must be prioritized considering that bigger local governments have their respective internal revenue allotment (IRA) which could be used in the improvement of their road network.
Under the proposed bill, the DPWH will be tasked to prepare a comprehensive barangay road development plan for the next five years so that barangays in the remote parts of the country will be given equitable chances to be able to have improved roads in the future.
He added the House version of the bill was forwarded to the Senate for the approval of the counterpart measure so that the same will be subjected to the bicameral conference committee to iron out possible conflicts before it will be submitted to the President for him to sing the said legislation into law.
Cosalan expressed optimism that the senators will give due course to the said legislation because it is one of the identified interventions that will spur economic growth in the countryside and  contribute in further improving the country’s single-digit economic growth.