Mega dam debt and death trap
ILOILO CITY - We wish to be like Sen. Franklin Drilon ecstatically crowing on the proposed mega-dam in central Iloilo, his “gift” to Ilonggos that promises jobs, brisker agriculture activities, prosperity and what not. Whenever we hear of mega dams, we are reminded of disasters like Drilon’s earlier “gift” to Iloilo, the P120 million building called Iloilo Hall of Justice, built in 1992 and the only building thereabouts to be condemned and abandoned in the wake of the 5.5 magnitude quake of February 6, 2012. Deduro batting for alternatives to the mega dam: small dams to benefit small farmers, and rehabilitation of existing dams/ Other buildings, much older ones erected in pre-war time yet, withstood the tremblor. Only the HOJ that Drilon now hisses whenever he hears grumblings against it, sustained cracks that disjoined beams from pillars, and sunk the walls, indicative of structural flaws. The HOJ is a monument of corruption. Its materials used are ...