Rehab of oil spill areas deferred for lack of funds
Gov. Felipe Hilan Nava said yesterday that he could only hope that Malacañang could order the release of the funds before the tragedy’s first year anniversary. “Well that is what we all are looking forward to. We are waiting for the release of the funds,” the governor said.
In Aug. 11 last year, motor tanker Solar 1 sank during rough weather, spilling its load of 2.1 million barrels of crude oil into the sea. The oil spill damaged hundreds of kilometers of coastline and displaced residents of coastal barangays.
Although coastal clean-up operations have long ceased and the provincial government has initiated minor rehabilitations on its own, the major rehabilitation has yet to be implemented, Nava said.
“We are busy preparing for the rehabilitation. What we are waiting for is the release of the funds,” the governor said during yesterday’s meeting of the Regional Development Council here.
He said that all rehabilitation plans by the local government units and the line agencies of the national government are already in place. But since the Department of Budget and Management has not yet released the funds, they could not be implemented. “We already have the plans. All that remains to be done is to implement these (plans),” Nava stressed. Nava recalled that President Arroyo promised to allocate P800-900 million for the rehabilitation and restoration of the island.
Guimaras Rep. JC Rahman Nava, who was then governor of the province when the environmental tragedy occurred last year, is also lobbying for the release of the funds.
Nava said that he has already brought the matter with presidential assistant for Western Visayas Rafael Coscolluela.
Line agencies are also doing their part for the release of the funds.
He said that he will be meeting with government agencies involved in the rehabilitation to discuss matters on how to implement the plans simultaneously and with coordination.
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