STO. TOMAS, Pampanga – Fourth District Board Member Nestor “Bay” Tolentino urged the local government units (LGUs) along the river bank to support move on the revival of the Pampanga River Control System (PRCS).
Tolentino said the local leaders can pass a joint resolution or a position paper addressed to Sec. Rogelio Singson of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to be adapted in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan asking the public works department to reactivate the old defunct PRCS.
“The governor and the provincial board support any move to revive PRCS”, Tolentino disclosed.
Being a former supervising civil engineer of the PRCS when it was still active, Tolentino vouched the capacity of the PRCS to maintain and dredge the river system not only in Pampanga but the whole of Central Luzon.
He said that revival of the agency under the supervision of the DPWH will ensure funding to rehabilitate flood control facilities and also the availability of equipment to maintain the conveyance capacity of river channels.
“The PRCS used to have heavy equipment. This is what we need these days for the maintenance of the water and river channels “, the board member said.
Furthermore, Board Member Tolentino said that PRCS will also eliminate finger-pointing when it comes to problem on flooding and obliterate dikes, levees, revetments and slope protection.
“During calamities PRCS will be the sole body responsible to any problem brought about by flooding”, he added.
Twenty years ago, PRCS used to be an attached agency of the DPWH that is mandated to supervise the rehabilitation and dredging of river channels. During the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo different agencies was created that resulted to the duplication of functions which led to the deactivation of PRCS.
(Jenna V. Lumbang)
