After its 60-day campaign to rid the streets of any form of obstruction, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) readies another round of road-clearing work – this time giving a 75-day deadline for local government units (LGUs) across the country.
According to DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya, the reason behind the extension is to continue the achievements that were realized during the first staging of the operations.
“Alam naman po natin na meron din pasaway pang mga LGUs. May mga nagbalikan din doon sa kanilang dati nilang gawi (We know there are stubborn LGUs which went back to their old ways) after the 60-day period,” he said in an interview over DZMM.
With this in mind, Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año is set to implement another period to rid the streets of obstructions, saying that polices in road clearing operations should be harmonized as LGUs have differing understanding on how to carry out the directive.
“Maglabas tayo ng mas maliwanag na pamantayan at palawigin na ito, (We’ll come out with clearer policies and extend this),” Malaya said.
Malaya said that the date of the implementation of the 75-day extension is yet to be determined since they are still working on a new memorandum for the planned second round.
The DILG earlier issued Memorandum Circular 2019-121, ordering all LGUs to reclaim public roads that are being used for private purposes.
Within the 60-day deadline, local executives were mandated to clear all streets from obstructions such as illegally parked vehicles, basketball courts, barangay halls, and illegal vendors.
Last month, the DILG announced that all LGUs in Metro Manila complied with the mandate.
Año said that the LGUs passed the test after over 600 roads in the National Capital Region were cleared. – Manuel Tupas
