FOOD-FOR-WORK

A FOOD-for-work  program will be launched by the Dagupan City government in partnership with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

City Administrator Farah Decano said the program is a national government initiative to be implemented by the city government that will mobilize barangay residents initially to unclog esteros and drainage canals in their respective communities.

She said under the program, the barangay folks who will volunteer to work on the project will be paid with rice provided by the DSWD.

Decano said the unclogging project is done yearly in Dagupan before the onset of the rainy season as a flood mitigating measure.

The project will also help protect residents from dengue since mosquitoes lay their eggs in esteros and drainage canals.

Barangay chairmen will pick the volunteers to mitigate the impact of expected heavy rains in the months ahead that result in severe flooding in the city, Decano added.

All barangays of Dagupan are set to be covered by the program but the unclogging of esteros project will be started in the poblacion, particularly in the flood-prone areas.

The dredging of the shallow river system by two dredging machines deployed to Dagupan by the DPWH is ongoing.

Mayor Belen Fernandez, she added, has also stepped up her program to elevate roads in low-lying areas of the city to minimize flooding.

At the same time, the city government is working closely with the DPWH and Fourth District Rep. Christopher de Venecia for the continuation of flood control projects along the banks of the Pantal River starting in Barangay Pogo Chico.

Former Rep. Gina de Venecia, mother of Christopher, and Mayor Fernandez, started the project in 2013 after noting that floodwaters from adjacent Calasiao town flow directly to residential communities of Dagupan instead of going directly to the Marusay River. (Leonardo Micua)

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