Provincial board members who attended an early dinner meeting with the President on December 18 at the Pine Hills Hotel told MindaNews via text messages this week that she promised the fund to repair the highway and after Gov. Jose Ma. Zubiri followed it up in the said meeting.

"Nag Merry Christmas lang siya (She just greeted as Merry Christmas)," the provincial legislators said, amid reports she was also giving cash gifts to local officials.

But Board Member Nemesio Beltran Jr. said the President pledged "she will have our roads repaired".

Board member Roland Deticio corroborated this statement and said the President vowed to give the P200 million budget to this Second Congressional district highway, stretching about 130 kilometers.

Arroyo is scheduled to return here on January 8 to lead inauguration rites of the new Bukidnon Medical Center.

Deticio told MindaNews early in May this year that the portion requiring rehabilitation was finished in 1985 yet and had a lifespan of 15 years.
"It should have been replaced in 2000 considering the location of Bukidnon as a crossroad for cargo trucking in Mindanao," he said.

In April this year, the provincial government criticized the National Economic Development Authority for excluding major road projects in Bukidnon among the priority projects under the Mindanao "Super Region" development strategy.

"It is a bit disturbing that new projects have been prioritized but the Super region isn't addressing our problem with the national highway," Deticio told an open forum during the province's regular session.

NEDA officials were asked to update the provincial legislators of the projects under the Super region and legislators were dismayed after finding out that there was no major infrastructure project for Bukidnon.

Deticio described the exclusion a "mockery.”

Ro Ann Bacal, NEDA 10 regional director, said in April that the Regional Development Council did not receive a proposal from Bukidnon's Provincial Development Council as of 2006 when the projects for the Super region were collated by the RDC based on priority projects from LGUs.

However, a source at the Provincial Planning and Development Office who asked not to be named for lack of authority to speak on the matter told MindaNews the need to widen and upgrade the highway starting from Puerto had already been filed with the RDC between 2005 and 2006. (Walter I. Balane / MindaNews)

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