DAVAO CITY— More roads will be opened for public use in Davao del Norte’s two agricultural towns after an agreement forged by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and the provincial government. After a brief tension in Brgy. Balagunan in Santo Tomas town on Thursday involving placard-carrying residents demanding the opening of a road, BuCor and Tagum Agricultural Development Company, Inc. (Tadeco) agreed to allow public access starting October 7.
The road, traversing the Tadeco-owned banana plantation situated within BuCor’s property, has been closed since 2015 after Tadeco put up gates for “bio-security” reasons. BuCor prison camps commander Rufino Martin said it only allows Tadeco, which has been leasing the land for decades, to seal off the road for security reasons, pointing out that its inmates work at the banana plantation.
BuCor operates the 30,000-hectare Davao Prison and Penal Farm in Panabo City, including the contiguous prison reservation of 8,000 hectares that traverse the adjoining towns of Dujali and Santo Tomas. Residents in some villages where the Tadeco-owned banana plantations are located, however, complained that they have been barred from using several roads and had to use farther routes with longer travel time.
Under the deal agreed upon by BuCor and Gov. Edwin Jubahib, the provincial government will maintain the roads not only in barangays Balagunan and Tulalian, Santo Tomas town but also in Brgy. Bobongon, Dujali town, before the roads will be opened to public traffic on October 7.
However, residents coming and going out of the road would still undergo bio-security measures such as the footbath for disinfection. BuCor and Tadeco officials said this is necessary to ensure that the prevailing Panama disease ravaging the banana plantations in Davao del Norte does not spread and contaminate more plants.
Jubahib said he was compelled to act after receiving complaints from residents who were barred from using public roads. He added that the move is also in line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to clear public roads of obstructions.
“It’s not about politics. What matters to me is to respond to the complaints of the residents in these villages and what is mandated to me as the governor in the province,” the governor said.
Meanwhile, Martin said public access was not denied on the roads in question and that they merely installed gated checkpoints for security reasons. He also voiced apprehension that the unbridled access to roads within the prison reservation would encourage inmates working in the banana plantations to try to escape.Jubahib said the provincial government has allotted PHP15 million for each road in the three barangays, to be used in graveling, widening and concreting. (PNA)