P2M worth of materials needed to fix Tabuelan water system

CEBU, Philippines - At least P2 million worth of materials is needed to restore the water system in Tabuelan town that was wrecked by super typhoon Yolanda.

Tabuelan Mayor Rex Gerona has sought the assistance of the provincial government for the purchase of 450 pieces of GI pipes needed to restore water supply in five upland and four coastal barangays in the municipality.

A total of 1,461 households have been affected by the scarcity of water in the town.

“Naa man gud mi gikinahanglan nga tubo nga worth mga 2 million kapin. Ang pagbutang na man sa tubo ang kuwang. Kung matrabaho na siya, malihok na tong atong water system (We need to purchase pipes worth over 2 million. Once the pipes are in place, the water system will be restored),” Gerona said.

Governor Hilario Davide III has agreed to help but said the town Council needs to come up with an official resolution.

“We will assist any way we can para ma-supplyan og tubig ang kabarangayan. (We will assist anyway we can so that water can be supplied to the barangays),” Davide said.

Gerona, for his part, said they will immediately work on the necessary documents, including the bidding, as soon as possible.

At the moment, the town is using its fire truck to distribute water, which is sourced from a spring.

Davide is set to visit Tabuelan and other towns in upland areas with problems in water supply to determine what help the province can provide.

“I told Councilor (Elizer) Climaco of Balamban and asked what’s the condition of Gaas. Within the week, I will visit Gaas and Cansumoroy,” Davide said.

The governor also said that provincial engineers have already checked the areas.

“According to them, naa’y nine barangays to benefit (the water system project). We will assist Tabuelan. Kay naigo sa bagyo pud (According to them, nine barangays will benefit from the water system project. We will assist Tabuelan because the town has been affected by the storm),” he said.

In line with this, Davide said he would also like to know if Rovilla Construction, the contractor of the water system in Tabuelan, is among the contractors of Capitol projects that do not have approval from the Provincial Board.

Rovilla Construction, which was hired during the time of former governor Gwendolyn Garcia, installed pipe lines from a spring in the town to a reservoir in Barangay Mabunao. The pipes, however, were found to be leaky and substandard and reportedly broke down easily during the typhoon last November 8.

“According to Mayor (Rex) Gerona, kanang patubig nila, duna kuno ni approval sa PB. I said if you have a copy, gai mi para maklaro nato (According to Mayor Gerona, the water system has approval from the PB. I told him to furnish me a copy so things will be clarified),” Davide said.

At the moment, the town is using fire trucks to distribute water to the waterless barangays.  (FREEMAN)