BAGUIO CITY – The City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance appropriating the amount of three million pesos for the installation of roofing for the overpassed located at Abano Street and Legada Road near Baguio Central School.
The ordinance authored by Councilor Lilia Fariñas stated the City Engineering Office will be tasked as the implementing agency to cause the installation or the construction of the overpasses along Abanao St. and near the City Hall structure.
Under the proposed ordinance, the implementing agency will be tasked to prepare the cost estimates as to the budgetary requirements of the projects taking into consideration its design, the materials to be used, the labor, and the duration of the project relative to the budget appropriated; provide and present its findings on the most appropriate date to the City Council, showcasing the plans of the project, the cost estimates and budgetary requirements, the bill of materials, labor cost, and duration of the project and other details pertinent to its accomplishment; upon approval of the project by the City Council, the same shall commence subject to specifications and in accordance with national building standards and shall guarantee the project’s reliability and resilience by careful scrutiny and regular inspection.
Section 16 of Republic Act (RA) 7160 or the Local government Code of 1991 provides that every local government unit shall exercise the powers expressly granted, those necessarily implied therefrom, as well as powers necessary, appropriate or incidental for its efficient and effective governance, and those which are essential to the promotion of the general welfare within its territorial jurisdictions, local government units shall ensure and support, among other things, the preservation and enrichment of culture, promote health and safety, enhance the right of the people to a balanced ecology, encourage and support the development of appropriate and self-reliant scientific and technological capabilities, improved public morals, enhance economic prosperity and social justice, promote full employment among their residents, maintain peace and order and preserve the comfort and convenience of their inhabitants.
The ordinance added the overpass located along Abanao St. which crosses over from the present A hotel towards the Empire building and that along Legarda road near the city hall and Baguio Central School do not have the necessary roofing to protect pedestrians from the sun and rain.
The local legislative measure underscored the need to install the appropriate roofing to the identified pedestrian overpasses since the said public infrastructures are being used not only by adult pedestrians but also by children and senior citizens who also deserve to be protected from the sun and rain.
Further, the installation of roofing in the said overpasses will help in providing uniformity in the various overpasses in the city which have the roofs that serve as protective structures to spare the residents and visitors alike from the serious negative effects of the sun and rain to their health, safety among others.
The said overpasses were built by the local government to provide pedestrians a safer way of going to various portions of the city without interfering with the smooth flow of traffic along major roads.
By Dexter A. See
