Stop ‘tuwid na daan’ project from ‘sinking us deeper into hopelessness’

In behalf of the poor residents along the national road in Pililla, Rizal, where a road-widening project is being done, we rise in protest against the decision of the Department of Public Works and Highways, as announced by its contractor(s)/engineers, that the cost of restoring any structure to be hit by the project will be borne by the residents. In the two instances when this road was widened in the late 1960s and in the 1980s, the restoration of damaged structures, such as fences and pathways, was done by the contractor at no cost to the residents.

At this difficult time when the poor residents hardly have enough for their daily subsistence, we can only hope that those who thought of this project are not callous enough to force us into shelling out money meant for our daily needs. We demand that the DPWH reconsider and reverse its decision on this issue to save us from sinking deeper into the pit of hopelessness that this “tuwid na daan” project threatens to do.

It would have been better if the funds for this project were channeled to dredging the silted river beside this road. The river overflows and inundates the town proper every time a severe downpour occurs.—EMILIANO G. MARTINEZ, [email protected]