Long-delayed Isabela road project rapped

A senior administration congressman on Wednesday called on the Department of Public Works and Highway to summon the contractor of the P1.6 billion Ilagan-Divilacan Road in Isabela to explain its failure to complete the project which is long overdue.

Isabela Rep. Napoleon Dy, a senior member of the House Committee on Good Government and Accountability, said construction started in March 2006 but accomplishment remains below 50 percent.

“This is a classic example of a project that is overpriced, half-finished, anti-environment, and full of irregularities,” said Dy.

The 82-kilometer road will connect Ilagan City to the towns of Divilacan and Maconacon. It starts in Barangay Cabisera 10 and Barangay Sindon Bayabo in Ilagan City and ends in Barangay Dicatian in the coastal town of Divilacan.

“The project is only half-finished after the provincial government already spent 1.6 billion pesos. If you do the math, that means that the administration of Gov. Faustino Dy III spent around 39 million pesos for each kilometer,” Dy said.

He described the project as “obviously overpriced. Even the initial costing of the project, which allocated 20 million pesos per kilometer for road opening––not including concreting––is higher than the standards set by the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways).”

Dy also questioned why the project was bidded out to a third party contractor, Quezon City-based CM Pancho Construction, when P1 billion out of the provincial government’s P2.6 billion loan for the construction of the road was earmarked for the purchase of construction equipment for the province.

“Where is the billion peso worth of heavy equipment that were purchased with the funds? How much more does the provincial government need to complete this project, which is only half-done?” Dy said.

The congressman also demanded to know what the provincial government had done with the trees that were cut down to make way for the road network, which will pass through and along the Isabela National Park and Protected Area in the Sierra Madre mountain range.

"This is another concern with regard to this road, which could have an adverse effect on the environment in the area," he said.

He challenged Gov. Bojie Dy and Vice Gov. Tonypet Albano must "come clean regarding this project, for the sake of transparency.”

“This is not about politics, this is about accountability and good governance. The billions loaned by the provincial government will be paid for by Isabela taxpayers, and they deserve to know what happened in this project.” Dy clarified.