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'Common sense': Structures damaged by Southern Mindanao quake were 'substandard', says Tulfo
'Common sense': Structures damaged by Southern Mindanao quake were 'substandard', says Tulfo
At A Glance
- It doesn't take an expert for someone to know that the structures from Southern Mindanao that were affected by last week's earthquake were "substandard", Deputy Majority Leader ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo said.
Deputy Majority Leader ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo
It doesn't take an expert for someone to know that the structures from Southern Mindanao that were affected by last week's earthquake were "substandard".
Thus, said Deputy Majority Leader ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo, who has filed a measure asking the appropriate House committee to hold an inquiry to find out whether or not infrastructures built in Region XII were built within standards.
The measure is embodied in House Bill (HB) No.1476, which Tulfo filed together with his fellow ACT-CIS Party-list solons.
"Hundreds of millions of pesos in government infrastructures in Sarangani province and General Santos City were either damaged or turned into rubble and some simply vanished in thin air after the 6.8-magnitude earthquake in that region last Friday," Tulfo said in a privilege speech Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 21.
"Hindi po ako engineer pero common sense na substandard ang pagkagawa ng nasirang pier at kalsada doon (I'm not an engineer, but common sense says the damaged pier and road were substandard)," he said.
Before this, Tulfo, the deputy majority leader for communications, was tasked by House Speaker Martin Romualdez to assess the damage in the quake-hit areas down south.
He went on to share his observations, which led him to believe that the structures had been poorly built.
"Yung mga konkretong kalye doon na nasira, kung walang bakal sa loob ay sinliit ng hinliliit ng daliri ko o 'pinkie finger' (The concrete roads that were damaged there were mostly devoid of steel bars, and if them, they were as thin as my pinkie finger)," Tulfo said.
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"Ang mas masaklap, ang nasirang pier sa Glan, Sarangani ay parang pinagtabi-tabi lang ang concrete slabs at walang mga bakal na connector sa katabing slab na para bang mga pyramid ng Egypt," he added.
(What's worse is that the concrete slabs used for the damaged pier in Glan, Sarangani were just laid side by side with no steel connector to the next slab, as if it was the pyramids of Egypt.)
Tulfo was thankful that no one was hurt or killed as a result of the damage at the pier.
"We need to investigate this before it's too late, Mr. Speaker," the broadcast journalist-turned-lawmaker further said.
Co-authoring HR No.1476 were ACT-CIS Party-list Reps. Jocelyn Tulfo and Edvic Yap and two district solons Benguet lone district Rep. Eric Yap and Quezon City 2nd district Rep. Ralph Tulfo.