BORACAY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 6 is waiting for a special delegated authority to implement the improvement of the Manoc-manoc-to-Yapak road in this famed island resort.
The road widening project, which was initially funded P490 million, is a top priority of the Boracay inter-agency task force.
Aklan District Engineer Noel Puentebella has asked DPWH regional director Wenceslao Leano Jr. to endorse the deployment of the special authority to DPWH Secretary Mark Villar.
Engineering districts are only allowed to implement big-ticket construction projects with a budget not exceeding P100 million.
DPWH regional directors, meanwhile, are authorized to approve work programs. They are also authorized to procure and implement projects with budgets up to P300 million.
If a project has a more than P300-million budget, a delegated authority must be assigned to implement it, according to DPWH’s Department Order 20 issued on Jan. 31, 2018.
“Kailangan lang natin ang approval ng ating DPWH secretary para sa Boracay project para ma-implement at maumpisahan,” said Engineer Fritz Ruiz, chief of the planning and design division of the Aklan District Engineering Office.
The road widening project is seen to be completed in October.
The Department of Budget and Management released the project’s P490-million budget on June 1. It will be used for the concreting of the three sections of a 5.26-kilometer (km) road from Barangay Manoc-manoc to Barangay Balabag.
“Itong budget ay aabot lamang ang construction ng kalsada malapit sa Elizalde sa Balabag. Kailangan ang additional budget sa road network mula Balabag plaza to Yapak,” explained Ruiz.
As of June 7, the DPWH reported that 244 structures were either partially or totally demolished within the 12-meter road right-of-way area.
About 94 percent of the 1.46-km stretch from Cagban to Manoc-Manoc Rotunda is already workable, said the DPWH.
It added that 75 percent of the 3.80-km stretch from Rotunda to Mt. Luho Junction is also workable already.
A total of 1,075 truckloads of debris have been dumped at a staging area in Barangay Balabag after the clearing operations, which also affected some 92 trees along the road.
The Aklan Electric Cooperative has already started relocating six of its 471 electric posts in the island.
The DPWH has also fast-tracked the P50-million construction of a two-lane, six-meter wide carriageway to complete the Boracay Circumferential Road.
The project will help address traffic along the main road and reduce travel time from Cagban jetty port in Barangay Manoc-Manoc and other areas in the island. (With Aklan Forum Journal/PN)
