Monster truck track! MinDA Team Survives Olutanga-Alicia Road!

On the way out of Olutanga Island today, I decided to pass through the notorious Olutanga-Alicia Road in Zamboanga Sibugay.

I wanted to see for myself this road which first gained national attention about 3 years ago when a photo of a jeepney half buried in the mud in the middle of the road was posted on social media.

Today, the road is undergoing construction under the Duterte Administration after having been ignored and neglected by previous governments.

The 29.10-kilometer PR-09, Lutiman-Guicam-Olutanga Road costs P989.16 million funded by the Asian Development Bank.

The condition of the road, however, is still very bad and this is mainly because of obvious incompetence of the construction group undertaking the project.

Evidently poorly equipped for such a huge project, the contractor bulldozed and scraped the whole stretch without building alternate routes.

It effectively turned the whole road project into a “kumunoy” or quick sand where vehicles fall sideways because of the slippery and muddy road.

We were able to get through because of the 4-wheel drive vehicles lent to us by Olutanga Mayor Jun Ruste.

The Department of Public Works and Highways would do well by assessing the capability of the contractor to handle the project.

#NoRewardforIncompetence!

#TamaNaAngPahirap!

(Photos by the Mindanao Development Authority Media Team.)