Dredging of Dungon Creek to be implemented in stages
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) 6 Regional Director Rolando Asis said the dredging of the Dungon Creek will be implemented in stages after the city government has yet to fully relocate the families living along the creek.
Asis said the contractor will start the dredging work at the mouth of Dungon Creek which is at the back of the Marina restaurant in Diversion Road, Mandurriao. The area is clear of any disturbances.
However, Asis could not categorically say when the contractor will start the dredging works.
The P50 million funding for the dredging is sourced out from the 2009 calamity fund of the DPWH. The city government is tasked to relocate the affected families.
Asis said the contractor will have to stop the work whenever there are obstructions. He said the process was already discussed with Mayor Jerry Treñas.
Earlier, Asis lamented that they could not begin the dredging works since the city government has yet to relocate all the affected families. They even offered their trucks to transfer the affected families to the relocation site.
On his part, Treñas said everything is set for the dredging works. He said he met with the public works officials, Iloilo City Urban Poor Affairs Office (ICUPAO) head and barangay captains affected by the project.
The contractor and public works is amenable to start their work at Marina to Nabitasan, Magsaysay Village to Jalandoni Bridge. The affected families are ready to transfer to the relocation site, said Treñas.
ICUPAO head Roni Firmeza said the staging areas is divided into three phases, one is at the Jalandoni Bridge until Bolilao Mandurriao; Bolilao until Magsaysay Village and from the bridge in Dungon going to the old Mandurriao airport.
Firmeza, in an interview over Bombo Radyo said the dredging will start from the mouth of the Dungon Creek upstream. The plan to start the excavation process through different stages is “workable.”
Of the total number of households identified by ICUPAO nearly seven percent voluntarily vacated the creek. Over all, there are 402 affected houses. The number of affected houses decreased from 640 to 402 houses after the dimension of easement was amended, said Firmeza.
Originally, the area set for the dredging works from the left and right side of the creek is 12 meters. It was lowered to three meters, Firmeza said.
Firmeza is confident the project will soon commence since the city is trying its best to resolve the issues which concerns the dredging works and the relocation of the affected families.
The ICUPAO head also appealed for the cooperation of the families affected by the dredging works. The city government is trying to fast track the construction of transit houses at the San Isidro relocation site to accommodate the relocatees