(ROEL T. AMAZONA)
MASLOG, Eastern Samar– The construction of a road connecting this remote town to its nearest town of Jipapad will bring economic prosperity, ease of transportation, and peace, according to town Mayor Heraclio Santiago.
Speaking during the groundbreaking ceremony of the P98.78 million road project on May 26, Mayor Santiago said that once completed, this will benefit more than 1,050 hectares of rice farms in his municipality and about 1,000 hectares of rice farms in Jipapad town.
The groundbreaking was graced by House Minority Floor Leader and 4Ps party-list Representative Marcelino Libanan, officials from the Department of Public Works and Highways Eastern Samar District Engineering Office, and mayors from the towns of Maslog, Can-avid, Dolores, Oras, San Policarpo, and Jipapad.
Not only expected to help farmers deliver and transport their produce efficiently, the road will also help in maintaining peace in far-flung villages of Maslog, Jipapad, and Arteche traversed by the road.
“Once this road is completed this will mean the end of the insurgency problem thus bringing peace and prosperity not only to our town but also to the entire Eastern Samar province,” Mayor Santiago said.
“That is how important this road project is,” he added.
The road project consists of the construction and concreting of 1.5731 kilometers road, including drainage and slope protection.
The project is targeted to be completed within 236 days or about eight months.
Officials of two interior villages of Maslog also expect the same outcome once the road project is completed.
Alfredo Nuguit, barangay leader of Tugas and Federico Bergonio of San Roque village said that their areas used to be affected by insurgency problems, although none of their residents had joined the communist group.
The officials clarified that their people just provided support by giving food and money to the rebels.
In San Roque, the farthest village of Maslog and located near its boundary to Jipapad town, Bergonio said that the last sighting of communist members was last year.
“This road will lessen their presence because this will help the military to have access to our village,” Bergonio said.
San Roque village is located about eight kilometers from the town proper and can be reached by a three-kilometer trek from Tugas village.
The village chief of Tugas has the same sentiment sharing that even though they only have at present an all-weather road, the presence of communist rebels in their village has diminished.
“Even though we only have an access road at present, their presence has weakened because the transportation going to our village becomes easier,” Nuguit said.
Residents of Tugas are using a single motorcycle and a tractor locally called “kuliglig” as their means of transportation from the village to the town proper.
Travelling to the village lasts for about 40 minutes traversing unpaved road and rice fields, or more than an hour by walking, a condition that Rep. Libanan want to end.
“I will make sure that this project is going to be completed because these roads will help a lot in improving the lives of Eastern Samar residents,” Rep. Libanan promised.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)
