Sorsogon gears up for PAMANA Projects for 2012

By: Bennie A. Recebido

SORSOGON CITY, July 11 – To ensure a continuous implementation of the Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA) in this province, Sorsogon Governor Raul R. Lee announced that the provincial government through the Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) had already prepared the list of PAMANA priority projects and its needed budget for the Current Year 2012.

For this year, the second phase of the PAMANA projects will again be on track as follows:

For Barcelona town – water system and river control project; Casiguran – concreting pavement of Calayugan-Burgos Farm to Market Road; Gubat – concreting pavement of Union-Sangat Farm to Market Road; Juban – concreting pavement of Caruhayon-Tinago Farm to Market Road and of Lower-Upper Calmayon; Magallanes – Eco-tourism project (Phase II) which includes Parola Beach, Bucalbucalan Spring Resort and Sta. Lourdes Grotto, establishment of evacuation center and post-harvest facility with mechanical flat bed dryer; while in Pto. Diaz is concreting pavement of Gogon – San Rafael Farm to Market Road.

Aforesaid projects were allocated with five million each amounting to a total of P40-M including the establishment of a provincial agricultural facility, the cold storage and cold chain facility, in Brgy. Abuyog, Sorsogon City.

Last July 4, this year, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) represented by Assistant Secretary Romulo B. Halabaso formally turned-over the 10 out of the 12 completed PAMANA projects 2011 for Sorsogon to the respective local chief executives and its direct beneficiaries.

It can be noted that based from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) 2009 data, Sorsogon was identified as one of the priority provinces having high presence and activities of the New People’s Army (NPA) with 114 conflict affected barangays (CAB) in seven municipalities.

PAMANA started in Sorsogon by conducting a road-mapping on February 4, 2011 in preparation for the implementation of PAMANA projects for 2011.

On February 9 of the same year, Gov. Lee issued an Executive Order creating the PAMANA Technical Working Group (PTWG) that will lead the over-all supervision, management and implementation of the PAMANA program in the province.

This year, Gov. Lee initiated anew the re-organization of the PTWG in preparation for the implementation of the second phase of PAMANA projects in Sorsogon. The PTWG is composed of the Office of the Governor, Department of Public Works and Highways District 1 and 2, Phil. Army, Phil. National Police, Department of Education, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Provincial ENR Office and the Department of Interior and Local Government acting as the secretariat.

Sorsogon, along with Camarines Norte and Masbate are among the three provinces in Bicol region identified by OPAPP as beneficiaries of the peace initiatives of PAMANA program. (BARecebido, PIA Sorsogon)