By: Gerome Dalipe
The Iloilo Provincial Board has asked the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to enforce the clearing of all telecom and electrical power posts in the province.
The Provincial Board recently passed a resolution asking both agencies to help clear the outer provincial roads of the electrical posts that obstruct the highways and pose traffic accidents to motorists.
“With the noted increase of road mishaps and accidents, the need to strengthen measures for preventing such accidents in the Province of Iloilo must be pursued,” read the resolution authored by Board Member Domingo Oso, Jr.
The resolution was an offshoot of President Duterte’s directive to local officials to reclaim public roads which are being used for private ends.
Duterte ordered the local officials to get rid of illegal structures and to rehabilitate all recovered public roads by placing street names and street lights, among others.
Likewise, the officials are encouraged to develop and implement strategies that will address the displacement issues cause by the implementation of the President’s directives.
The Constitution recognizes the protection of life and property and the promotion of the general welfare of the public, the provincial board said.
Responding to the Board’s call, the DPWH-6 said it had already removed obstructions and illegal structures along national roads even prior to Duterte’s directive.
In his letter to the provincial government, DPWH-6 district engineer Nonie Viyar said that one of the concerns of their office in implementing infrastructure projects was clearing of road-right-of-way of national roads.
It was a national issue that affects the target of their office to implement the projects on time, said Viyar.
The electric cooperatives such as Ileco-I, which is under the jurisdiction of the District
Engineering Office was covered by the DPWH and DOE Joint Circular 1-2017 and Joint Circular 2-2019.
Thus, the payment will be given to the relocation of electric utilities based on the provisions of the circular.
But the relocation of the utilities was not covered by the joint for the telecommunication companies.
Compensation will not be given to the affected facilities and relocation will be shouldered by the private telecommunication companies said Viyar.
He said they already sent series of communication to the telecom companies, but received no reply as of the moment.
