By: Sheila Covarrubias
ZAMBOANGA CITY, May 29 (PIA)- - The City Government the other day unveiled yet another
barangay hall project that will extremely impact the lives of the constituents
in the populous area of Tumaga.
Despite
a Sunday, Mayor Celso Lobregat and Vice Mayor Cesar Iturralde and some members
of the City Council turned over the P4.1 million newly-constructed barangay
hall project, to elated Tumaga barangay officials led by chairperson Carolina
Gaganting the other day, barely 3 months after the same barangay received the
city-funded lying in clinic and wellness center located just a few meters away
from the new infrastructure.
Assisting
the mayor and the vice mayor during the unveiling rites were Councilors Rudy
Lim, Myra Paz Abubakar, Percival Ramos, Jaime Cabato, Luis Biel III, VP Elago
and Rogelio Valesco Jr.
The barangay hall, according to Mayor Lobregat,
is only one of the numerous infrastructures worth over P83 million that his
administration has implemented in Tumaga from 2007 to the present.
Ongoing
at present are P31 million worth of projects which include 2-storey
24-classroom building at the Catalina vda de Jalon Elementary School and some river rip rapping
projects, he said.
But
as he turned over the barangay hall, Mayor Lobregat also directed City Engineer
Luis Despalo to immediately prepare the plans and estimates for the site
development of the barangay hall and the construction of the access road
leading to the health center.
Both
the barangay hall and the barangay health center sit in a 3,000 square meter
lot that the city government purchased at a
cost of P4.5 million over a year ago following negotiations between the
city government, former Tumaga chairman Nonoy Fonollera and the lot owners.
The
lot purchase was perfected that paved the way for the construction of the two
facilities during the term of barangay chairman Carolina Gaganting.
“We
always say that many projects have been done, more are coming, the best is
coming and this (barangay hall) is part of the best”, the mayor said. “We do
not promise things but we just do things”.
Mayor
Lobregat said similar barangay hall projects are also ongoing in other
barangays such as Sinubong, Labuan and Putik. Numerous other barangay halls
have already been completed and turned over. (JPA/SC/CIO/PIA9-ZBST)