LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The Regional Development Council (RDC) in the Cordillera ordered the infrastructure committee to conduct an investigation on the complaint of Gov. Crecencio Pacalso regarding the rampant illegal dumping of construction debris along various roads that impede the smooth flow of vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
Pacalso informed the RDC-CAR members during its fourth quarter meeting that his office had been receiving numerous complaints from the motoring and commuting public provincewide that unscrupulous contractors implementing government projects wilfully dump their debris on various sections of the road that result to inconvenience and safety threats to the public.
Further, Pacalso claimed this malpractice results in creating slippery sections of the roads when it rains creating a dangerous situation.
Milagros A. Rimando, regional director of the Cordillera office of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA-CAR) and RDC-CAR vice chairperson, said the infrastructure committee must do the necessary investigation not only on the projects being implemented by the Department of Public works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) but also in other projects of local governments to check if contractors are strictly observing the proper construction techniques to lessen the inconvenience and threat to safety of the public during the implementation of the road development projects.
Another issue being brought to the attention of the RDC-CAR is the rampant use of job mix or the mixing of construction aggregates in their road-building sites inconveniencing the travelling public, thus, the need for concerned government agencies and local governments to strictly enforce the pertinent rules and regulations governing the proper implementation of infrastructure projects not only in Benguet but also in the different parts of the region.
The RDC-CAR infrastructure committee was directed to immediately convene and meet with the representatives of concerned government agencies on how to discipline erring contractors who continue to defy lawful orders in relation to the implementation of the projects.
Pacalso said concerned agencies in charge of the implementation of major infrastructure projects should take the necessary actions to prevent repeated complaints from the public on the poor work quality of the projects being implemented in their places.
The governor is optimistic there will be an improvement in the way contractors execute projects once the concerned agencies issue directives to them to properly dispose their construction debris and refrain from using the pavement of roads for their job mix.
By HENT