SORSOGON, October 10, 2018 — Residents in Sorsogon now have easier access to basic social services as two farm-to-market roads (FMRs) were completed yesterday.

Rodolfo Fulo, the chair of Barangay Sta. Cruz, Barcelona, narrated how they were consistently challenged by the rough and muddy roads before the project was undertaken.

“‘Pag umuulan, nawa-washout ang daan. Tapos ‘yong buhangin, duon naman sa baba. ‘Yong madadaanan ng jeep, duon lang din kami makakadaan. Minsan hindi pa makaakyat,” he said.

(Whenever it rained, the road would be washed out. Then the sand would collect at the bottom. We could only pass where the jeeps could pass. Sometimes we couldn’t even go up the road.)

He shared this during the handover ceremony of the FMR from barangay San Ramon to Sta. Cruz in Barcelona.

In a separate handover ceremony in the municipality of Gubat  for the FMR connecting barangays Nazareno to Rizal, Barangay Rizal chair Carlos Pura enumerated the benefits they gained after the completion of the project.

“Malaking bagay sa amin ang pagkakaruon ng magandang daanan. Mapapabilis ang pagpapadala ng mga produktong mula sa bukid papunta sa bayan at mapapadali ang pang araw-araw na kabuhayan ng ating mga ka-barangay,” said Pura.

(Having a good road has been of great benefit to us. We can transport our products from the farm to the town much more quickly, and our daily lives have become more comfortable.)

In his remarks, Area Team Manager for South Luzon Paul Escober told the townspeople they do not need to thank the government for concreting roads in their areas.

“Responsibilidad po ng gobyerno na ibigay ang basic services sa inyo, dahil galing din ito sa inyong buwis. Sa inyo po ang kalsadang ito,” he said.

(It is the responsibility of government to provide basic services to you because this comes from your taxes. This road belongs to you.)

PAyapa at MAsaganang PamayaNAn (PAMANA) Director Sherwin Vizconde echoed the local chiefs’ sentiments in his remarks in both ceremonies.

“Dahil dito [FMR] madali nang makapag-baba ng produce at higit sa lahat, para po ito sa mga anak natin na naga-aaral dahil hindi na nababasa o napuputikan ang mga sapatos o tsinelas nila,” he said.

(With FMRs, farmers can deliver their produce more easily. But more importantly, this is for our children who are studying. Now their shoes and slippers won’t have to get wet or muddied.)

The two FMRs were among the 2017 PAMANA projects under the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) mounted in close coordination with concerned implementing agencies.

PAMANA is the national government’s convergence program that extends development interventions to isolated, hard-to-reach, and conflict-affected areas, ensuring that no one is left behind. ###