PDC oks P407M 2014 invest plan

CEBU, Philippines - The Provincial Development Council has approved yesterday the P407 million worth of development projects and activities under the Annual Investment Plan of the Province of Cebu for 2014.

The collective output of the series of consultative summit formed the basis of the AIP that was presented yesterday, said Provincial Administrator Mark Tolentino in his remark.

Tolentino said that it was during the summit where areas of concern were identified and made known by the stakeholders including the mayors of components cities and municipalities.

The road, bridge, highway construction and rehabilitation program got the biggest chunk of the AIP amounting to P113 million.

These include the farm-to-market roads; provincial, municipal and barangay roads; purchase of heavy equipments; and the planning and pre-implementation of trans-axial highway.

The second biggest chunk of the AIP goes to the assistance and subsidy of the local government units, institutions, and capital expenditure projects and activities in the amount of P110.5 million.

The Office of the Governor gets P65 million, Vice Governor gets P8 million while each of the 15 members of the Provincial Board gets P2.5 million.

Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale informed the mayors that the utilization of the assistance funds should be in accordance with the joint memorandum circular of the Department of Interior and Local Government, and the Department of Budget and Management.

The memorandum provides specific projects to which the AIP is spent such as in social, economic, and environment management projects.

The AIP also provides P73 million for hospital equipments; medical, dental and laboratory equipments; purchase of ambulances and emergency vehicles; and construction, repair, rehabilitation, upgrading of buildings and structures.

Other projects include water supply development, environment protection, and preservation of heritage structures, construction of women and children’s crisis center, eco-tourism development, maintenance of bus terminal, convention center, and cultural center; electrification, and food production, livelihood and entrepreneurship support program.

The approved AIP for 2014 is bigger than this year in the amount of P362 million.

The AIP will form part of the proposed annual budget to be submitted by Gov. Hilario Davide III next week to the PB for approval. — (FREEMAN)