Electrical poles in the Philippines are not just an unsightly mess, they are also quite deadly.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1188329 |
At least 8,736 electric poles are blocking widened roads in Eastern Visayas, posing danger to motorists, according to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) regional office here.
The relocation of these poles requires P562.84 million in funds.
Of the proposed budget, only PHP48.93 million have been released from 2020 to 2021, said DPWH regional information officer, Cressida Paula Mangaporo, in a phone interview on Friday.
“We are still waiting for the release of funds requested for 2022. It’s not easy to get funds since there are other regions with pending requests to remove electric poles,” Mangaporo told the Philippine News Agency.
The official said the regional office expects more releases in 2023 since they have been making regular follow-ups to download the budget.
Of the 8,736 poles, 3,543 are in Samar province; 2,287 in Leyte; 1,656 in Northern Samar; 568 in this city; 518 in Southern Leyte; and 164 in Eastern Samar.
Leyte III Electric Cooperative (EC) general manager Allan Laniba, president of the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives, said they have been requesting funds for the relocation of posts in the past four years.
“We submit(ted) all needed documents, and this has been discussed in budget hearings in the House of Representatives. We don’t have budget to relocate these poles. We installed these posts years before the road widening project,” Laniba said in a phone interview.
He pointed out that the posts should have been removed before the road widening since it is more costly to relocate poles after concreting.
“It is very illogical for engineers to concrete the road if there are still poles there,” Laniba added.
Mangaporo said the problem of unmoved posts will not be encountered in the new project since road widening projects that started in 2020 have already included funds for the relocation of affected electric poles.
Isn't that great? Road widening projects which began in 2020 will include the funds to relocate electric poles. Why were these funds not included in previous projects? Why is it that the president of the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives clams they have been requesting these funds for four years and have been turned down every single time?
Will there be a Senate investigation? Don't count on it. Those clowns never want to investigate important problems that affect the entire nation. And yes, this is a nationwide concern. Note above that the regional DWPH director says the funds are hard to get because, "there are other regions with pending requests to remove electric poles." Even PNP officers have fallen victims to these poles.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1188236 |
A police officer died on Wednesday night after his motorcycle hit an electric post that has not been moved since road-widening activities were done along a primary highway in Sta. Fe, Leyte.
Police Staff Sgt. Gary Cabujoc was heading to the regional police office in Palo town from his hometown in Barugo when the accident happened in Pilit village in Sta. Fe town at about 8 p.m.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) said in its report, which was shared with journalists on Thursday, that Cabujoc hit the pole due to poor visibility and a lack of warning signs in the area.
Cabujoc fell to the creek and was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
The PNP admitted that there have been many reports of road accidents due to the unmoved electric posts.
Leyte III Electric Cooperative (EC) general manager Allan Laniba, in an interview, called for the implementation of the Department of Energy – Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) joint circular signed in 2017, prescribing the uniform guidelines and procedures for the relocation of EC distribution/sub-transmission lines, and the proper payment of the costs involved.
“There should be a just compensation for every pole to be removed. We discussed everything (with) DPWH and we’re still waiting for funds in the past four years. I don’t understand why the DPWH and contractors widened the road with the electric poles still there. This is a nationwide concern,” said Laniba, president of the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives.
DPWH regional information officer Cressida Paula Mangaporo said they have been making regular follow-ups with their main office to finance the relocation of electric poles away from the widened road.
“We have been sending request and reiteration letters to our central office to download funds for poles relocation. For Leyte 1st District, which covers the town of Sta. Fe, our central office will download PHP39 million next year,” Mangaporo said in a phone interview.
In Leyte’s first congressional district alone, 535 electric poles should be removed from widened roads, according to the DPWH.
Allan Laniba, president of the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives, claims he does not "understand why the DPWH and contractors widened the road with the electric poles still there." Maybe that's because he is the rare honest bureaucrat who cannot comprehend the corruption rampant in the DPWH?
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| https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2021/3/31/pacc-names-most-problematic-agencies-corruption.html |
The DPWH wins the distinction of being most corrupt agency every single year. Just Google "DPWH most corrupt" and see their many awards going back years.
I have written about this issue of electric poles being in the middle of the road before back in 2019. I even took a video.
Who is the genius engineer which planned and designed this road? What a waste of resources, work, man hours, money! This section of newly widened road is absolutely useless. No vehicles can use it lest they crash into a electric pole. I am completely baffled as to the stupidity that went into designing, planning, and constructing this road right around these electric poles. Did they not take the poles into account? The DPWH should be held accountable for this major mess up.
The video speaks for itself and is below. Enjoy!
There is absolutely no way this problem which is a "nationwide concern" will be solved anytime soon. Keep in mind that these two articles are a snapshot of the larger problem. If there are 8,736 electric poles blocking the road in the Eastern Visayas alone just imagine the magnitude of the situation. And it's all because the DPWH is so corrupt that they can't perform their job correctly. How many more people will die before these poles are removed?
The more i read stories like this about PH the more it appears that the PH is ran no different than a group of little kids playing House, since little kids also are famous for not looking into the future and missing the issues of today become major problems later. Like wood poles suddenly in traffic on your newly widened street
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