THE CHAIR of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas on Wednesday assured the city government that it will endorse its request to include the budget for drainage and flood control projects in the national government’s annual allocation.
Kenneth Cobonpue, chair of the RDC-7, said he will tackle the request of the city government as soon as the RDC-7 Full Council convenes.
He, however, said Congress has allocated in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) a substantial fund for the drainage and flood control projects intended not only for this city but for the entire Metro Cebu.
“It’s in the GAA already. This year, it has substantial funding for the anti-flood projects,” he said in an interview with the Philippine News Agency (PNA), adding that the national government started to allocate funds for the flood control master plan starting in 2017.
Cobonpue mentioned the ongoing drainage rehabilitation along the Pope John Paul II Avenue (old San Jose Dela Montaña Street) as among the existing civil works covered in the drainage master plan.
Engineer Edgar Tabacon, regional director of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Region 7, clarified, however, that the Metropolitan Cebu Flood Control Master Plan that costs PHP44 billion only includes de-clogging of natural waterways such as rivers and creeks.
“Drainage systems along our roads in Metro Cebu are not included in the flood control master plan,” Tabacon said in a phone interview.
Of the PHP44 billion intended for flood control, Tabacon said only PHP2 billion was allocated two years ago.
“We hope that more fund from that total of PHP44 billion will be allocated in the next budget year so that we can finish the anti-flood control efforts through the DPWH early. Because if we only have PHP1 billion per year allocation, Metro Cebu’s flood control projects will be finished in 42 years,” Tabacon said.
He stressed the need to rehabilitate road-side drainage system in Metro Cebu, particularly in Cebu City, side by side with the rehabilitation efforts in rivers and creeks under the flood control master plan.
“Kay kun mobaha atong kasapaan inig bunok sa kusog nga uwan, mao sad atong mga karsada, mobaha pag-ayo kay clogged ang atong mga drainage (If our rivers will get flooded during heavy rains, our roads will get flooded also because our drainage are clogged),” he said.
On Monday, Cebu City Councilor Jerry Guardo asked the RDC-7 to endorse the PHP9-billion budget they set aside for the city’s drainage master plan in order to solve severe flooding in some areas here.(By John Rey Saavedra)
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