Besao, Mountain Province – Rapid economic growth is expected in places along the Besao-Nacawang road with the implementation of the P96M-worth Improvement of the Besao-Nacawang Farm-to-Market Road (FMR) under the Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) which includes widening and concreting of the nine kilometer road stretch.
The groundbreaking rites were held at the Tabbak Bridge, Besao East last October 19, 2017 with the blessing cum time capsule-laying ceremony officiated by Rev. Willis Lloyd B. Cunning. A program ensued at the contractor’s field office in Banguitan, Besao.
Besao Mayor Johnson B. Bantog II extended his people’s gratitude that the project has finally come to fruition. Also, the people of Besao expressed high hopes for further road improvements like provisions of retaining walls or slope protection to prevent soil erosion.
“We are hopeful that with the continuing partnership of the provincial government and the Department of Agriculture, more high impact projects will be availed of by our municipality that will not only benefit coffee producers but also heirloom rice production,” Bantog said.
In response, DA CAR Regional Director Lorenzo M. Caranguian said that with the approval of the P21 billion 2nd tranche budget of PRDP in the national budget, such concerns may be approved. He encouraged all stakeholders to continue doing their best in all stages of the project. He gave emphasis on the impact of good performance in the approval of future project proposals.
“There is no substitute for a good record,” he said. He further encouraged the Besao people to act as stewards of such projects so they will not only benefit the present generation but also the next generations.
It can be recalled that the aforementioned project is originally a part of a P190M worth project, “The Improvement of the Besao- Nacawang and Tadian – Mabalite Road” proposed by the Provincial Government thru its Provincial Program Management and Implementing Unit (PPMIU) in 2013 to the to the Department of Agriculture. In 2014, this 20.71 kilometer Farm to Market Road (FMR) of Mountain Province, together with the 13 kilometer FMR of Tanudan, Kalinga, were the first two infrastructure sub-project proposals in CAR to be approved under the Philippine Rural Development Program (PDRP) of the national government for funding.
The PMMIU, members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan led by then Vice Governor Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr. and community beneficiaries represented by Tadian Mayor Anthony D. Wooden and former Besao Vice Mayor Harry L. Baliaga successfully defended the project to the Regional Project Advisory Board (RPAB) with the premise that the concreting of Besao- Nacawang and Tadian- Mabalite Road will shorten travel time, reduce hauling cost of goods, decrease vehicle operating costs and reduce post-harvest losses especially on perishable goods considering that the main source of livelihood of the beneficiary communities is farming such as coffee-growing.
It is also noteworthy that the approval of the P190 million road project was realized because of the willingness of the Provincial Local Government Unit (PLGU) of Mountain Province to provide its counterpart in the amount of P19M with P152 million and P19M as counterpart of the World Bank and the Department of Agriculture, respectively.
The P 190M project, however, had to be split because there was a failure of bidding twice. The failures were attributed to the lack of qualified contractors. Consequently, the Provincial Government was then advised by the conduit department to resort to split the big project. Hence, the P 102 M-worth project, “Improvement of the Tadian Nacawang-Mabalite FMR” and the “Improvement of the Besao-Nacawang FMR” amounting to P96M. Moreover, per consultation conducted by the PPMIU with stakeholders, the latter opted for a longer concrete road without slope protection versus a shorter road with slope protection. Thus, the type of road projects now being implemented in the area.
In his message, Gov. Bonifcacio C. Lacwasan, Jr. expressed his gratitude to the DA. He also thanked the place’s residents and officials for supporting the project.
“The groundbreaking of the road project is not just a dream come true for the people but also for the past and present officials who clamored for road improvements in your place. The World Bank-assisted project will surely provide long term benefits to all communities that are affected,” the governor said.
He also mentioned that there are three other PRDP projects that are being implemented in Mountain Province this year. These are the Improvement of Banata-Sumey-ang-Sadasadan FMR in Bauko, Improvement of Poblacion-Bantay FMR in Paracelis and the Improvement of Tadian-Mabalite FMR in Tadian.
Vice-Governor Francis O. Tauli attributed the realization of the project to the cooperation of everyone involved.
“Through the efforts of your officials and with the cooperation of the residents, we are able to successfully implement the program. Now, we again ask for your assistance in overseeing the project’s proper implementation. Consider this project as a legacy of our late Gov. Leonard G. Mayaen who pioneered this project,” Tauli said.
The provincial officials are hopeful that the DA-PRDP will bring more FMR projects to this place to further improve the travel time of commuters since the road stretching from Nacawang towards Barangay Laylaya of Besao is a gateway to the Ilocos Region. ** MP-PIO
