Lao assails lack of drainage plan

City has no drainage master plan, according to city councilor

The lack of a master plan for the city’s drainage system is being blamed for exacerbating flooding as Cagayan de Oro was flooded twice this week.

Councilor Teodulfo Lao Jr. said his committee, the committee on public utilities, will make sure that the responsible persons or agencies will answer for failing to address the flooding problem which they had been promising to solve for years now.

Lao said since he got elected, the first concern he raised was the lack of plan for the drainage system here but this initiative has fallen into deaf ears.

“They spend so much on building bridges and drainages but sayang lang kay gabaha gihapon, dili effective ilang paghimo kay di coordinated ang ilang drainage plan, that’s why their drainages always fail (They spend so much on building bridges and drainages but it is a pity because it still floods which means what they are doing is not effective. Their drainage plan is not coordinated

that is why they fail), “Lao said.. Next week, he is set to convene the DPWH, the City Engineer’s Office, experts, private contractors who are experts on drainage, environmental engineer, among others hoping to finally craft a plan on the city’s drainage system.

On June 6, the city was flooded in CM Recto, Kauswagan, and Carmen areas. Last Tuesday, the same areas were flooded again, and caused the following roads to be impassable:

Villarin St. - Max Suniel St.; CM Recto (Pimentel, Osmeña, USTP, Ketkai); Corrales Ext.-Pacana (DENR); JV Serina St. (Madonna Hospital; JRB Hospital); Gumamela Ext, Carmen; and Kauswagan Highway (Honda).

“We want to be known as the City of Golden Friendship and not the City where urban flooding happens almost everyday when it rains,” he said.