The barangay council of Bajumpandan is asking the local government unit of Dumaguete City and the Negros Oriental 2 Electric Cooperative to hasten the long-delayed energization of at least two low-cost housing projects in that outskirts village.
Councilor Juancho Gallarde of Bajumpandan, also a media practitioner of a local cable television station, disclosed that the Bajumpandan barangay council had already passed a resolution for both the electric cooperative and the NORECO 2 to give attention to the problem.
Until today, Phase I and Phase II of the Caritas Village Shelter and the Core Shelter housing sites in Bajumpandan are without power connection except for the street lights which were erected a few years back when the projects were completed.
This, because it would cost an estimated P1.2 million for a secondary power line that would supply electricity to the individual consumers at these sites, Gallarde said.
According to Gallarde, several follow-ups made revealed that both the Noreco 2 and the city government do not have the money to put up the secondary line so that residents at the housing sites can apply for individual power connections.
To date, residents of the low-cost housing projects are hoping that they will enjoy the benefits of having electricity in their homes.
Recently, the Caritas Village Shelter residents of Phase I and Phase II were beneficiaries to solar-powered lights donated by Watts of Love, an international non-profit organization working to restore communities affected by disasters.
The Caritas Village Shelter is a joint project of the Dumaguete City government that donated the lots, and the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-National Secretariat for Social Action, the Diocese of Dumaguete and its Social Action Center, and Caritas International and Caritas Philippines, to provide housing units to families displaced by “Sendong” in late 2011.
The Core Shelter, meanwhile, was built through the National Housing Authority and the Department of Social Welfare & Development, also for “Sendong” victims.
Gallarde assured that the Bajumpandan barangay council will continue to request the Noreco 2 and/or the city government for the much-needed power connection to these housing sites.
He said media reports have it that Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria has hinted at possible funding by next year while the Noreco 2, through its acting manager Leovigildo Elmaco, had intimated of starting the project later this year. (PNA/LAP/JFP)
