DEPARTMENT of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark A. Villar said key infrastucture projects entrusted to his department are targeted for completion by the time President Rodrigo R. Duterte steps down in 2022.
Jul 282017
Jul 142017
THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Transportation (DOTr) topped the list of budget increases in the 2018 national budget to help sustain the government’s infrastructure program, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said on Friday.
Sep 132015
INFRASTRUCTURE spending in July nearly doubled as agencies played catch-up with their expenditures although the total still fell short of the government’s target for the month, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said in a statement.
Jun 302015
INFRASTRUCTURE spending in April rose by more than two-fifths on the back of higher disbursements from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) but the total for the first four months was still below year-earlier levels, data from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed.
May 202015
THE GOVERNMENT has pushed back the timetable for companies to submit counteroffers for Manila North Tollways Corp.’s (MNTC) P18-billion proposal to connect the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) and South Luzon Expressway (SLEx), a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) official said on Tuesday.
Jan 292014
President Benigno S. Aquino III presides over the meeting on the update on effects of Typhoon Pablo at the President’s Hall of the Malacañan Palace on Wednesday (December 12). In photo are Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Emilio Aguinaldo Abaya, Health Secretary Enrique Ona, Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson, Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Jr., Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Social Welfare and Development Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman, Secretary to the Cabinet Jose Rene Almendras, Presidential Management Staff (PMS) head Julia Andrea Abad, Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) Secretary Ramon Carandang and Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery (PARR) Panfilo “Ping” Lacson would not name the local politicians who he said were getting in the way of reconstruction efforts in communities affected by typhoon “Yolanda.” “On a positive note, yesterday, we found out na medyo nag-lie low na ‘yung mga nakikialam doon sa bunkhouses,” Lacson told reporters. “Hindi naman masyadong importante iyong mga pangalan dito, ang importante iyong mensahe na hindi kayo lulusot kasi maraming nagbabantay.” Lacson agreed that there is no overpricing of the bunkhouses being built as temporary shelters for typhoon victims but said substandard materials were used for the bunkhouses. He cited an instance in Eastern Samar where the roof of a bunkhouse was blown away by a relatively weaker typhoon “Agaton.” Previously, a probe was launched to look into reports that politicians Read More …
Jan 272014
Lacson: No overpricing in Yolanda bunkhouses. Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery chief Panfilo Lacson, in giving update on the rehabilition efforts in Yolanda-hit areas during a press briefing at Malacañang on Monday, January 27, said there was no overpricing in the construction of bunkhouses in Tacloban City. Benhur Arcayan The government is considering stopping the construction of bunkhouses for the victims of Typhoon Yolanda and instead may just give them materials to repair their houses, Presidential Adviser for Rehabilitation and Recovery Sec. Panfilo Lacson said. “Nag-confer kami ni [DPWH] Secretary Babes [Singson] na parang we’ll do away with the bunkhouses na. Bibigyan na lang talaga ng construction materials ‘yung mga tao na gustong magkumpuni ng transition shelters,” Lacson said during a press conference at the Palace on Monday. “Kasi ‘pag kinumpuni nila ‘yung mga dating bahay nila, in effect those are temporary shelters, kasi ire-relocate din naman sila eventually ‘pag nakakita na ng relocation sites at nagawa na ‘yung mga housing units,” he added. He issued the statement after some Yolanda victims initiated a petition to grant each of their families P40,000 in financial assistance. But even before this, issues of overpricing and substandard bunkhouses also hounded the government. Singson, however, had earlier said he will resign if there was indeed overpricing. On Monday, Lacson confirmed that there was no such thing. “There’s no question, walang overpricing. Kasi pinatingnan ko rin ito. Meron kaming pool of civil engineers who went to the area and took a look at the Read More …
Jan 202014
Aerial shot of the province of which was heavily damaged by super typhoon Yolanda (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – To make roads, bridges and flood control projects will be weather-resilient, the Department of Public Works and Highways will partner with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the University of the Philippines (UP) Training Center for Applied Geodesy and Photogrammetry. DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson said they are learning from the destruction caused by the southwest monsoon, last year’s Bohol quake, and cyclones such as Sendong, Pablo and Yolanda. “Intensive trainings for DPWH concerned personnel shall be conducted nationwide to teach them on how to use these available technologies as basis for planning and monitoring,” the DPWH said. Singson directed the DPWH Planning Service, Project Management Office for Major Flood Control projects, regional directors and planning officers and district engineering offices to maximize the high-resolution flood hazard maps, landslide hazard maps, Digital Surface Model, Digital Surface Model and other planning tools. The DPWH recently held a briefing attended by key officials, along with Dr. Alfredo Mahar Lagmay, who explained DOST’s Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (Project NOAH). Lagmay explained NOAH’s component projects such as Hydromet Sensors Development, DREAM-LIDAR 3-D Mapping Project, Flood NET-Flood Management Modeling Project, Hazards Information Media, Strategic Communication Intervention, Disaster Management using WebGIS, Enhancing Geo-hazards Mapping through LIDAR, Doppler System Development, Landslide Sensors Development Project, Storm Surge Inundation Mapping Project, and Weather Information – Integration for System Enhance (WISE). Also, Lagmay said these tools or data sets Read More …
Jan 062014
U.S. Marines provide safe drinking water to typhoon survivors Thursday Nov. 21, 2013 at Tacloban city, Leyte province in central Philippines. AP FILE PHOTO MANILA—Major donors to the Philippines’ response to the humanitarian emergency in typhoon-ravaged Eastern Visayas begged off from making any comment Monday on the reported overpricing of bunkhouses for people rendered homeless by the calamity. The United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union withheld comment on the Inquirer report on the padded costing for bunkhouses—temporary shelters regarded as critical in the continuing response two months since the emergency. They are among the biggest donors to the relief effort, now entering its second month and gradually shifting to early recovery, including moving survivors from evacuation centers to bunkhouses pending the construction of permanent shelters. The Manila embassy of the UK, the largest donor by far, did not issue any comment. British aid for typhoon relief in the Philippines has reached P11.1 billion, including contributions from both the UK government and private individuals, the embassy said. The UK has also vowed to support reconstruction in Eastern Visayas over the long haul. The Manila delegation of the European Union also withheld comment pending its humanitarian aid department’s aid assessment this month. The EU has so far pledged $26.8 million or P1.18 billion, according to the Philippine government portal’s Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAITH). The US embassy in Manila also did not comment on the issue. A US embassy official privy to American assistance said the embassy “did not Read More …
Dec 272013
Palo, Leyte (Mabuhay) – Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Rogelio Singson vowed to fight against misuse of funds intended for reconstruction activities in typhoon-stricken areas. In a meeting Thursday with 16 regional directors, typhoon-affected DPWH employees and maintenance personnel who assisted in disaster response, Singson said that he will not forgive officials who will attempt to misuse rehabilitation funds. “Our fight against corruption will continue. We will make sure that budget will be used to rebuild areas destoyed by ‘Yolanda’ and should not fall into wrong hands,” Singson said. “I’m warning those who will take advantage in this task that we will not forgive you whether you are a congressman, regional director or division chief.” He said he had a meeting this week with rehabilitation czar former Senator Panfilo Lacson to discuss measures to ensure that reconstruction efforts will not be tainted with corruption, more so that these funds have been entrusted to the Philippine government by donor countries. The government aims to substantially complete the recovery efforts by June 2016 or before the end of President Benigno S. Aquino III’s term. It is expected to rebuild the lives of about 16 million people in central Philippines. Singson led the distribution of initial assistance to storm-affected DPWH employees in the region. Those whose houses were totally washed away received P5,000 each. Workers with partially damaged houses got P2,500 each. The DPWH chief vowed to give more assistance to displaced employees in the region on top of the Read More …