KABAYAN, Benguet – Rep. Eric Yap vowed to source out some P150 million from the public works department for the road opening project leading to Barangay Lusod, which is the remotest village in the mystical town.
Yap, who earlier sourced out funds for various road opening projects leading to remote areas in the different parts of the province, stated that the project from the Tabeo Lake to Barangay Lusod will primarily be focused on road opening so that the difficulty of going to and from the said area will be initially solved.
He pointed out that roads are actually engines of growth that is why his office made sure that the public works department will prioritize the provision of funds to implement identified road opening projects in the different parts of the province to allow the improvement in the economic activities of the people and for them to be able to establish sustainable sources of livelihood.
Congressman Yap claimed that the funds for the concreting of the roads that were opened will be provided by the public works department in the succeeding years as what is important is for the said roads to be first opened to allow the people to be able to conveniently move in and out of their places and for them to be able to improve existing economic activities in the remote communities.
Earlier, the lawmaker worked out the allocation of some P200 million each for the road opening to the remote barangays of Tacadang in Kibungan and Kayapa in Bakun.
Moreover, funds for the road opening of the roads leading to the boundaries of Nueva Vizcaya from Itogon and to Pangasinan from Tuba have been provided by the public works department through the initiative of Congressman Yap.
The lawmaker underscored that roads are also important to ensure the timely transport of the agricultural produce of farmers from their farms up to the nearest trading center that is why he is doing his best to source out available funding support to improve the present condition of roads to make sure that there will be stable supply of vegetables in the market.
At present, Benguet remains to be the source of over 80 percent of the supply of semi-temperate vegetables being sold in different markets around the country.
Because of the presence of numerous vegetable gardens, Benguet was able to earn the title as the Salad Bowl of the Philippines.
Yap assured concerned agriculture industry stakeholders that one of his major priorities is to work out the improvement of the current state of roads leading to and from the vegetable producing communities to help farmers lessen the transport cost of their produce and maintain the good quality of the vegetables for them to be able to command higher buying prices that will guarantee them their desired income.
He underscored that farmers are important in the daily lives of Filipinos because they are the source of food of the people that is why they deserve the utmost support from concerned government agencies and the local government for them to improve their production which will ensure the steady supply of food on the table for Filipinos.
