P1.2 M grant set to ease low Bontoc town water supply

By Desiree Sokoken

BONTOC, Mountain Province --- Inadequate supply of water in this hot capital may soon be over.

Following his assurance last week that the water problem in the four central barangays of Bontoc is being addressed, Mayor Franklin Odsey announced May 26 that P1,200,000 has been awarded to the Bontoc local government unit from the Sagana at Ligtas naTubig Para sa Lahat (SALINTUBIG) Program.

Odsey said the grant, requested from the national government, will be used for  rehabilitation of the water system sourced from Barangay Talubin.

This will add to the P870,000 appropriated from the municipality’s calamity funds for the purchase of iron pipes to replace the worn-out plastic ones.

The Salintubig grant will be for the pipes from the intake tank to downstream, while the calamity fund will be for the pipes from Samoki to the reservoir, Odsey said. 

The total amount awarded to the Bontoc LGU from the SALINTUBIG project is P2,500,000.

The remaining P1.3 million will be turned over after the initial P1.2 million has been liquidated.

Odsey said release of the fund from the national government was timely, considering that the rehabilitation of the pipes is expected to be completed within the year.

“Definitely, this will help us fast track the rehabilitation, which will ensure then that what had happened to the four central villages this month can be avoided in the future,” he said.

The SALINTUBIG project is implemented jointly by the Department of Interior and Local Government, the Department of Health, and the National Anti-Poverty Commission. It aims to enhance the capacity of LGUs in planning, implementing, and operating water supply facilities.

It is awarded to qualified LGUs that have received Seals of Good Housekeeping from the DILG. Since 2011, the Bontoc LGU has been a holder of the Seal – bronze in 2011, and silver in 2012.