CLAVERIA, Misamis Oriental – The Local Government Unit of Medina, Misamis Oriental entered into an Inter-Local Agency Partnership Agreement (ILAPA) with the 524th Engineer Construction Battalion and the 58th Infantry Dimalulupig Battalion, at the municipal ground, May 04, 2021.
LGU Medina and the Philippine Army entered into an agreement to conduct projects for the benefit of communities in influenced and threatened barangays by the Communist Terrorist Groups (CTGs) in support to 58IB’s Community Support Program (CSP).
The provisions of the said agreement focused on the implementation of road improvement projects, such as road opening and road widening projects, as well as other infrastructure projects, within Medina’s territorial jurisdiction, with a focus on the following remote barangays: Pahindung, Tup-on, Gasa, San Isidro, Bangbang, San Roque, and Dig-aguyan.
People in the aforementioned barangays have been suffering for more than a decade because of armed conflict and have become a source of CTG recruitment. This hampered the delivery of basic government and social services to the citizens of the Barangays listed for CSP by 58IB, causing the constituents to suffer.
Medina’s obligations under the agreement include identifying projects in the barangays, providing gasoline, oil, and lubricant, and maintaining equipment, as well as disbursing funds for community-based assessments related to the Farm to Market Road project, road improvements, and other projects in the specified barangays. The 524ECB will be in charge of providing equipment and teams of highly qualified workers to carry out the projects. And the 58IB will oversee the provision of security and ensuring normalcy to the designated project sites and their immediate surroundings.
Hon. Donato N. Chan said in his message, “The bearing and execution of these ventures were then only a dream for all of us, an optimistic vision as they might say. However, thanks to the Philippine Army’s involvement through the 524th ECB and the 58IB in their CSP, this dream has finally come true. And I am ecstatic and grateful for the opportunity to work on the afore-mentioned joint project with the local government unit of Medina. I simply ask for everyone’s cooperation, particularly the Barangay Officials’ leadership, to assist the Army in successfully completing these projects by assisting them in securing the necessary equipment.”
Meanwhile, the citizens of Medina can rest assured that the Army will deliver its requisite interventions in completing the projects as Lt. Col Ricky L Canatoy, Commanding Officer of 58IB, put it, “We have been immersing our troops in different communities in Misamis Oriental in order to unearth issues and problems that the NPA continues to exploit and cause group conflict. And Medina’s Sitio Kabul-Kabul is one of those communities in need of proper attention to resolve the people’s issues, and we are grateful for this collaboration so that we can continue to give the people what they deserve: a thriving community with a bright future. I urge you, the people of Medina, to work with us and your leaders to make Medina a better place. I am sure that, thanks to Medina’s good governance, as shown by concrete, tangible evidence of economic development and peaceful environment, we will be able to successfully complete these projects. Rest assured that the 58IB would use all necessary force to safeguard the ongoing construction projects.
