BUTUAN CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Caraga on Monday, July 10, assured that it would rehabilitate some areas of the Daang Maharlika national highway in Agusan del Sur which is part of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s “Build Better More” (BBM) program to provide unimpeded travel and spur more economic activity.
One of the priority program of the Marcos administration is to reduce transport cost, not to hamper the flow of economic activity, and provide safe, unimpeded travel of vehicles and commuting public, said DPWH-13 Director Engr. Pol M. delos Santos.
Delos Santos said some areas of the 122-kilometer Sibagat to Trento section of the Daang Maharlika are set for rehabilitation.
“Our recommended budget is already forwarded on the national level for the rehabilitation works in some areas, particularly in San Francisco, Rosario, and Trento areas which are vital for economic linkages towards Southern Mindanao region, Caraga region, and Northern Mindanao region,” Delos Santos said.
He said a P3-billion budget has been recommended for the rehabilitation of parts of the Daang Maharlika highway under the BBM program.
Also known as the Pan-Philippine Highway, Daang Maharlika was a project of President Diosdado Macapagal and completed during the time of then President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. in the 1960s.
This flagship project of Marcos Sr. served as the country's principal transport backbone, connecting the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao.
“I hope this recommended fund will be approved and possible for commencement of its ground works next year,” Delos Santos said in an exclusive interview with Manila Bulletin.
“We want to assure Agusanons that problem of their roads in some portion in that agricultural-rich province of Agusan del Sur will be properly addressed which will be implemented by the DPWH under the good leadership of our very own Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan."
Delos Santos has directed officials and technical men of the DPWH-Agusan del Sur District Engineering Offices to closely coordinate with local government unit officials for a properly coordinated effort as the recommended budget for the rehabilitation of the Daang Maharlika has already been forwarded to the national level.
“We hope that by next year our recommended budget will be approved."
Rehabilitating the Daang Maharlika and other major trunklines of the national road system will not only provide unimpeded travel but will also bring down the cost of transporting goods, said an official of a business organization here which also noticed the bad road condition in some areas of Agusan del Sur, particularly the Rosario-Trento section.