BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred P. Dizon

‘Top performing’ DPWH offices

Lower ranked employees of the Department of Public Works and Highways in the Cordillera are grumbling, say our bubwits at the most controversial government agency in the region.

They are ridiculing the measly P5,000 to P20,000 cash prices for “top performing district offices” in relation to implementation of the agency’s “Masigasig Na Opisina, Masigasig Na Kalsada at Masigasig Na Sistema” (Mas OKS) program. They say these are soooo little as compared to kickbacks from infrastructure projects.

DPWH drumbeaters said the program is the first of its kind within the agency nationwide. Mariano R. Alquiza, regional director, was quoted as saying the “program aims to ensure sustainability, creativity and ingenuity of the project which is geared towards providing their clients efficient and effective service.”

The criteria for judging under the “Masigasig Na Opisina” category included compliance of the district engineering offices to rules and regulations of the Civil Service Commission department orders and office decorum; cleanliness in and out of the offices and orderliness which included landscaping and general services and facilities and sustainability of the project.
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Lo and behold! In this category, the Mountain province Engineering District emerged overall winner second year in a row and received a plaque and a P20,000 cash reward. Kalinga Engineering District landed second with a P10,000 while the Second Benguet Engineering District placed third.

The Mountain Province DPWH District including of course the regional office in Baguio had been the object of complaints by motorists and residents for “anomalous, haphazard, below par and ugly” implementation of the Halsema Highway project. The Halsema, they said, had been the perennial “milking cow” of corrupt government officials.

For the jeerers, please forward your complaints or enlightening text messages and e-mails to the powers that be, not only to this corner. One said the agency is a “soul taker” (inchepap si leng-ag as the Ifontok say, since people who join and work for the agency tend to lose their souls.)

Anyway, under the “Masigasig Na Kalsada” category, district offices were judged according to road and maintenance operations along national roads in their areas of jurisdiction and wow, the Kalinga Engineering District bagged first place with a P10,000 cash reward. Abra Engineering District came in second with a P5,000 cash reward and the Second Apayao Engineering District landed third.
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Alquiza had been twitted for saying "misinformation are being resorted to by some disgruntled individuals and groups who have an axe to grind against the DPWH and its officials" in relation to alleged substandard projects not only in Kalinga but other parts of the region, was criticized by cause oriented groups here.

"That’s not the product of the Bantay Lansangan’s imagination but of his imagination," retorted retired DPWH district engineer Pedro Pis-o, member of a nongovernment organization here. Pis-o said Alquiza should know by now that the information on the "remove and replace" activity as reported in the media was not true because the scaling and cracking, among other defects of the newly paved road and controversial P3.3-billion Bontoc-Tabuk-Tuguegarao Road in this province were still there when it was inspected.

The Kalinga Apayao Religious Sector Association earlier met with SPWH Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane in a closed-door meeting about road conditions in the province and from the grapevine, more stink is about to come out of road projects not only in Kalinga but other Cordillera provinces. Also present in the meeting were Bishop Renato Abibico, KARSA chairman Rev. Luis Aoas and Pis-o. They met in the residence of Kalinga Rep. Manuel Agyao in Bulanao in Tabuk.
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At that time, Ebdane had just inspected the widening and concreting work on the Bontoc-Tabuk-Tuguegarao Road. Earlier, Ebdane also inspected SONA projects in Mountain Province. There is more than meets the eye in what anti-graft proponents are now saying in Mountain Province and Kalinga on what really transpired with the Halsema and kalinga aroad projects.

Back to the DPWH awards lest we stray. In the “Masigasig Na Sistema” category, the criteria was based on construction, planning and design and materials quality control and hydrology. The Baguio City Engineering District emerged victorious and bagged P10,000, Abra Engineering District placed second with P5,000 reward while the Second Apayao Engineering District capped third in the contest.

Alquiza was quoted as saying the Mas OKS project serves as motivation for employees of the agency in different provinces to strive for the best in doing their duties especially in infrastructure development which is a major thrust of the Arroyo administration.
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He added the contest among the district offices in the region will improve as the years go by so that the people and their clients will be satisfied on they service they will provide them and would help redeem the image of the agency.

Commenting on the regional DPWH chief’s statements, our bubwits said such officials can talk all they want but more of the magic tricks and acts within the Cordillera DPWH would exposed out of thin air in due time, including the rabbit who does behind the scene acts.
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By the way, have you heard about this DPWH official, who our bubwits said went to a Baguio nightspot where the girls complain the weather is so cold then proceed to take off their clothes? Well, this official, despite feeling cold, later reportedly also took off his clothes in a drive-in hotel with his new girlfriend, like instant mami. Lesson for the week from the bubwits: sooner or later, secrets, no matter how these are hid, have a way of being bared.