Ronda town wharf rehabilitation starts

CEBU, Philippines - The extension and rehabilitation of Ronda wharf in the southwest of Cebu Province started last month and is expected to be completed before  the May 13 elections.

Awarded to WTG Construction, the P19.9 million worth of project started last December 20, 2012. The target date of completion is set on May 8, 2013.

The project is funded by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Department of Finance – Municipal Development Fund Office – Integrated Coastal Resource Management Project and the local government unit.

Mayor Mariano Blanco III said that the LGU has a counterpart fund in the amount of P2 million.

Prior to the commencement of the project, the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape - Cebu Site Management Unit (TSPS-SMU) approved the Special Application for Protected Area (SAPA) application to rehabilitate and expand their wharf.

The wharf connects Cebu to La Libertad, Negros Oriental. If the expansion project is completed, Blanco said they may then be able to serve roll-on roll-off vessels and not just the pump boats they are currently serving.

Blanco explained that the project, which is funded by a loan, would be able to bring in money for the municipality.

The TSPS has collected around P20 million from the SAPA applications along the Tañon Strait since it was declared a protected seascape by then president Fidel V. Ramos.

Ronda is exempted from paying the application fees, being a government entity.

Once operational, the local government unit is expected to earn revenues from the port, said Blanco.

Ronda is a fifth class municipality and Blanco considered his town to be one of the poorest towns in the Province of Cebu.  (FREEMAN)