| Hagonoy vice mayor hits DPWH |
| Written by Eldie S. Aguirre and Roger Panogadia | |
| Saturday, 12 July 2008 | |
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The vice-mayor of Hagonoy, Davao del Sur got irked over the failure of the contractor to provide safe passage for the villagers affected by the construction of a new bridge in Barangay Guihing.
Vice-Mayor Leonilo Junsay, in a media interview lashed at the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for putting the lives of residents near the old Guihing Bridge that was demolished to give way for the construction of a new bridge.
Junsay also warned its contractor to prevent the occurrence of another accident in the future for their failure to provide safety measures for people crossing the river using a bamboo raft and small boats.
Just recently, a boat with ten people aboard capsized in the midst of the river after strong floodwater hit them. Six managed to swim towards the riverbank while the boat and four other passengers were rescued along the coastline of Barangay Aplaya, Hagonoy – several kilometers from the site of the accident.
The vice-mayor said it is the responsibility of the contractor to provide safe passage for affected residents who was using the old bridge as their link to the other side of the river.
“They did not even consult the local government unit as to what precautionary measures would be undertaken for the safety of the people crossing the river,” Junsay said.
Villagers are demanding that a footbridge would be built across the river as temporary passage prior to the completion of the new bridge.
The Guihing Bridge is more or less 100 meters in length and served as the shortest link of the Davao to Makar road in General Santos City.
Motorists are using the 7-kilometer detour road to reach the other side of the river.
Junsay also complained on the contractor’s incapability to maintain the detour road.
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