OPAV to hold office at Malacañang sa Sugbo

CEBU, Philippines - The Malacañang sa Sugbo is expected to be reopened to serve as the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV).

Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino recently announced that he will set up his office at the century-old building, which has been considered as the official residence of the president in Visayas.

But the abandoned building, located in Cebu City facing Plaza Independencia, will have to be restored first after engineering experts found some defects on the structure.

The matter was brought up during the general assembly of the Association of Government Information Officers on Thursday that Dino attended as one of the invited guests.

One of the public relation officers asked Dino where they can easily reach out their concerns since OPAV serves as an important link between the various entities and stakeholders in the Visayas region and the national government.

“I am to set office in Malacañang sa Sugbo. (They say) it has not been used for six years. It seems to be a dilapidated structure so there has to be repairing works. But you can coordinate with my chief of staff Jonji Gonzales,” said Dino.

The ongoing inspection and soon-to-be repair works are handled by District Engineering Office in Cebu, one of the field offices of the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas.

In a separate interview, DPWH-7 Director Engr. Ador Canlas said inspection of the structure has started earlier this week and is expected to be completed next week.

He said the building can still be used but repairs have to be undertaken considering the damage it sustained following the magnitude 7.2 earthquake in 2013.

“The office is also on the process of preparing for the plans specifically the Programs of Work to be submitted for funding of the repairs needed,” he said over the phone.

Once the plan is finalized, Canlas said he will provide details as to the timeline of the repair works and the budget.  (FREEMAN)