CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Nine mayors allied with former President Arroyo have formed a “movement” urging the Aquino government to save their towns from devastation by rehabilitating the Arnedo diking system along the Pampanga river.
This, amid their fears that the collapse of the already damaged dikes now seriously threatens thousands of their constituents, following the recent effects of typhoons Pedring and Quiel which they described as the worst in the province in four decades.
Candaba Mayor Jerry Pelayo said he and eight other mayors formed a movement called “Save the 4th district, Save Arayat- Apalit Set-back Levee” in their bid to protect their constituents from severe danger posed by the collapse of the Arnedo dike.
It was built way back in the 1930’s and the parallel Arayat-Apalit setback levee which is dubbed as the second line of defense in case of the Arnedo dike is damaged.
The other mayors who are in the movement are Luis Chito Espino of Arayat, Asiong Macapagal of San Luis, Leonora Wong of San Simon, Oscar Tetangco Jr. of Apalit, Lito Naguit of Santo Tomas, Arturo Naguit of Minalin, Peter Flores of Masantol and Anneth Flores Balgan of Macabebe.
Several barangays in their towns have remained flooded for over two weeks now since typhoon Pedring.
The mayors noted that about 17,000 families live between the Arnedo dike and the setback levee running through Arayat, Candaba, San Luis, San Simon and Apalit and that these families face severe threat from any damage to the dikes during the rainy season.
The mayors also noted that the recent typhoons Pedring and Quiel were the worst to hit Pampanga in the last four decades, seriously affecting 99,095 families or 458,045 persons in the whole province.
“We must implement soonest the right engineering solution and intervention. The collapse of these dikes is calamity just waiting to happen. We can and must forestall this,” Pelayo said.
The Pampanga mayors cited particularly the 50-kilometer stretch of the Arayat-Apalit setback levee which they noted to be on the brink of collapse.
During the recent typhoons, seepages were noted in various parts of the levee, particularly in the towns of San Simon, Apalit, San Luis and in Candaba.
Pelayo, however, said he supported the decision of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to postpone a proposal for the asphalting of parts of the levee as well as other anti-flooding projects along the Pampanga delta river costing a total of P317 million pending “careful assessment and study”, but urged the department not to allow “any unnecessary delay.”
The Advocacy for the Development of Central Luzon (ADCL) then expressed support for the governor’s call, saying that the collapse of the dikes would cost “hundreds of lives” and that “hundreds of millions of pesos worth of properties are at stake.”
The group reported that some P77-million from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) was supposed to be used for the repair of some portions of the dike but that the funds were withheld from release pending reassessment of project priorities by the DPWH.
In August also last year, Philip Menez, DPWH director for the Major Flood Control and Drainage Canal Cluster 2, said that the towns of Arayat, Mexico, Sta. Ana, Magalang, Sto. Tomas and even the City of San Fernando would be put at risk by the collapse of the setback levee.
Menez said that the old Arnedo dike which he described as first line of defense is no longer dependable as most of its portions had already collapsed. Last February, the DPWH in Central Luzon announced it allocated P100-million for the rehabilitation of the Arayat- Apalit setback levee. The project, however, has not been completed.
