Residents delaying road widening

CEBU, Philippines - The widening of a portion of M. Velez and Don Gil Garcia streets near the Cebu Provincial Capitol building is still not finished and motorists continue to experience traffic congestion when they pass by the area because some residents are refusing to vacate.

Mayor Michael Rama ordered his secretary to schedule an urgent meeting with District Engineer Nicomedes Leonor of the Department of Public Works and Highways and the heads of the City Traffic Operations Management and the Squatter Prevention Encroachment Elimination Division.

Leonor said the widening of the two roads was delayed after some of the affected families refused to vacate their lots, including those who already received financial assistance from the government.

Because the issue involves the urban poor, the mayor ordered Division for the Welfare of Urban Poor head Collin Rosell to also attend the meeting to be held at his office this week.

Leonor earlier said that 78 houses will be affected by the widening of portions of M. Velez and Don Gil Garcia streets.

The concreting of half of Don Gil Garcia St. beside the Capitol building has been completed already, but the other side has not yet started because the houses of the residents are still there.

Leonor said the workers of the private contractors have decided to build first the retaining wall or riprap under the houses, otherwise the project will experience more delays if they will stop working.

Some of the affected families asked to suspend the demolition of their houses last Christmas, but when Christmas was over they again asked to move it after the Sinulog celebration, and then after classes.

The DPWH-Central Office allocated P28 million for the completion of the widening of M. Velez St. from the bridge to the end portion near the Capitol building and Don Gil Garcia St., the road beside the Capitol.

The DPWH had distributed P17,000 to the owners of the houses as disturbance fees because the lots they are occupying is government-owned lands that is considered part of the “dry river.”

Once the widening of Don Gil Garcia St. is completed traffic in that area will become smooth because from just a two-lane road, it will become a six-lane road to accommodate more traffic from and to Guadalupe. –(FREEMAN)