Reported by Rey Anthony Chiu
Bohol Correspondent for the Philippine Information Agency
Left as a nagging remnant of a political deal gone sour with nobody owning any part of the blame over the unfinished Agora, people heaved a sigh of relief when Mayor Dan Lim decides to treat the eyesore and then the work has to stop again.
Demolition of some parts of the still unfinished agora was ordered stopped recently, confirmed Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) District Engineer Celestino Adlaon.
He said, even if the building has been turned over to the local government unit, in the case of the Agora, city government of Tagbilaran, DPWH being the one under whose area the infrastructure is built still has the authority on the project.
Engr. Adlaon shared in an interview that he recommended for the temporary stoppage of the construction work as he observed that the contractors were using vibrators and jackhammers in demolishing some of the building’s structures and he feared it could affect the structural strength of the entire building.
The First Engineering District Engineer admitted that the contractor may have demolished some posts to give in to a noted possible violation of the building.
According to the National Building Codes, new buildings should be built at least 17.5 meters from the center of roads to ascertain the provision of vehicular and pedestrian road-right of ways.
This could have prompted the contractors to comply with the Code, otherwise the city may not accept the building upon turn-over for a blatant violation, so it should be moved back, sources said.
The unfinished Agora, a building that has become an eyesore in the Tagbilaran City skyline was an inherited infrastructure by the local government from previous administration, has become an object of political debates as to how to convert it into a more utile structure.
To assure its usability, the city government under Mayor Dan Neri Lim decided to assume the project and submitted it for bidding on a Build-Operate and Transfer scheme, said City Engineer Pianicita Castolo, in a telephone interview Friday. She however refused to comment if the stoppage would affect the contracted date of completion of the project.
City Administrator and Architect Walter Toston was not available for comment when contacted Friday morning about the nature and scope of the demolition as well as details of the contract.
Asked until when the stoppage would be effected, Engr Adlaon said until the regional and national DPWH legal departments can come up with comments on the alterations implemented by the new contractor which the city government called to finish the project.
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