TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines - A bridge has been eyed to shorten the route between Bien Unido and Talibon towns, which are located on opposite sides of the mouth of the Ipil River.
Representative Erico Aumentado (2nd district, Bohol) filed House Bill 4870, pushing for the construction of the bridge to be named "Pres. Garcia Bridge" in honor of the most illustrious Boholano who was born in Talibon, the fourth president of the Philippines and first president of the 1971 Constitutional Convention.
Aumentado said the bridge will strengthen the viability of the tourist destinations in the area and increase the commercial interaction between the two towns and their neighboring towns. The two towns are 20 kilometers apart by road, but the proposed bridge can cut travel distance to around five kilometers only.
Bien Unido used to be a component of Talibon but over the years became a separate town. Talibon now has become the center of commerce and industry, education and health services in the northeastern Bohol.
Talibon hosts a port of entry that accommodates fast craft serving the Cebu route and roll on-roll off vessels plying the northern Mindanao route. It also hosts the Garcia Memorial Provincial Hospital, Bohol Institute of Technology International College (BIT-IC), the Blessed Trinity College and commercial establishments bannered by Alturas-Talibon.
Aumentado also filed House Bill 4872 for the construction of a road to connect the barangays in Jao island, the second biggest island in the 2nd District next only to the island town of Pres. Garcia.
He said the island needed a road network to facilitate travel between barangays Pinamgo of Bien Unido, and Suba and Busalian of Talibon - now made even more necessary with the installation of electricity to enhance the development of education, health, commerce and other services for the islanders.
Jao island is rich in silica - the kind of sand used to make glass and other industrial purposes, in addition to its white beaches now being developed for tourism purposes by the private sector.
The island is also the top producer of buntal hats and other cottage industry products in the district and the center of seaweeds culture for the production of carrageenan and, lately, bio-ethanol.
A spokesperson of Aumentado told The FREEMAN that the waters off Jao are being developed by Algahol Philippines Co., Ltd., a corporation registered with the Board of Investments with a capitalization of US$100,000.