CEBU, Philippines — The private contractor of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) Package 1 has threatened to stop its construction works if the Department of Transportation (DOTr) cannot release the initial 10 percent of its total contract as mobilization fund.
The DOTr is given until June 15 to pay the amount as agreed, as confirmed by Cebu BRT Project Manager and City Councilor Jerry Guardo, chairman of the city council’s Committee on Infrastructure.
“They (Hunan Road and Bridge Construction Group Ltd) are demanding 10 percent mobilization. Until now, they haven’t received it yet,” Guardo said in an interview with The FREEMAN.
The total amount awarded to the Chinese contractor is over P900 million.
Guardo said there are contractors that would start the work even before getting any advance payment.
Hunan is also working as fast as they could, especially with no less than the Philippine president wanting to have the Cebu BRT Project’s Package 1 done by December, as a gift to the Cebuanos.
“If dili nila madawat ang amount na ilang gi-demand before June 15, basin masuspenso ang pagtrabaho diha. If madawat nila on or before, work continues,” added Guardo.
So far, the contractor has already finished 23 percent of the dedicated lanes.
The DOTr, for its part, is expected to address such concerns within the next 10 days.
Guardo hopes DOTr will act on the issue swiftly, so as not to hamper the construction work as well as add up to the inconvenience of the commuting public.
The DOTr already got the demand letter from Hunan, and CBRT Project Manager Engr. Norvin Ymbong said the check is already due for signature.
Although the issue on the payment has yet to be settled, Cebu BRT Technical Head, Engr. Kenneth Carmella Enriquez, had set a special meeting with some of the Cebu City department heads and other agencies today to discuss lot acquisition, timeline, and other matters.
The CBRT construction started in March.
The total project, which is divided in three packages, costs P16.3 billion.
The Package 1 consists of a 2.38-kilometer segregated bus lane with four bus stations. Package 2 is 10.8 kilometers, while Package 3 is 22.1-kilometer long.
Only the works for Package 1, so far, has been awarded to a contractor. — (FREEMAN)