LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Benguet Caretaker Congressman and Anti-Crime and Terrorism through Community Involvement and Support (ACT-CIS) Party-list Rep. Eric Yap vowed to source out from the public works department some P80 million to improve the current state of the Pines Park bridge to ensure that it will be safe for the travelling public.
Yap, who chairs the powerful House Committee on Appropriations, stated that the improvement of the bridge coupled with the putting in place of a good flood control along the river system will definitely help address the problems of the motorists in traversing the said bridge.
The Pines Park Bridge was damaged during the onslaught of Typhoon Fabian and the 3 weeks of continuous monsoon rains that caused the same to be closed to vehicular traffic for quite some time.
However, Congressman Yap disclosed that whatever budget that will be provided by the public works department for the repair of the damaged bridge and the putting in place of a good flood control along the said portion of the Balili River will definitely be part of the 2022 annual budget of the national government.
According to him, best efforts will be done to ensure the inclusion of the proposed funds for the project to ensure the immediate implementation of the project once the money will be available to avoid being affected by the enforcement of the election ban on the implementation of projects because of the upcoming May 9, 2022 synchronized national and local elections.
As what he had been constantly pronouncing during public gatherings, Congressman Yap explained that one of the major priorities that he will work on in the province while serving as the legislative caretaker is to make sure that people in the rural areas will benefit from the priority development projects that will be implemented aside from the quality services that will be delivered to them by concerned government agencies.
The neophyte lawmaker continues to make waves in the institution of reforms on how the development projects and the basic services are being implemented and distributed to the identified beneficiary communities in the different parts of the province as he was able to witness the bizarre condition of the residents who are living in areas that are not accessible to road networks.
Congressman Yap underscored that it is important for the people to feel the presence of the government in their midst through the implementation of development projects and the delivery of quality services, especially during the prevailing health crisis triggered by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Yap is already an adopted son of Benguet by virtue of a resolution from the provincial board last year and has embraced the culture and traditions of the indigenous peoples (Ips) in the province based on his public pronouncements over the past several months when he made visits to the various remote communities and bringing with him assistance from concerned government agencies. By HENT