Lawyer John Eddu Ibañez, City Legal Officer and head of the city’s Task Force APAS.
MANDAUE CITY, Philippines – Mandaue City will be distributing notices to vacate to the owners of the fish pens at the city’s wetland in barangays Banilad and Cabancalan to start desilting the wetland to prevent flooding.
Lawyer John Eddu Ibañez, City Legal Officer and head of the city’s Task Force APAS (Atoang Problema, Atoang Sulbaron), said that they are currently in communication with the owners.
READ: Mandaue launches Task Force APAS to help solve flooding concerns
Ibañez said that Mayor Jonas Cortes also asked to prepare the financial assistance to be given to the affected families whose livelihood lies in selling aquarium fish and other kinds of fish, like tilapia.
The City Legal Officer said that they are determining the number of beneficiaries.
“Paghinabi ta sa fish pens owners atoa sad timbang-timbangon kay panginabuhian man sad nila pero welfare manggud sa kadaghanan atoa gitan-aw,” said Ibañez.
The city wants to clear the fish pens to dredge the silted wetland in hopes of helping solve the city’s flooding problem.
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The wetland with an area of 146,270 square meters, functions as a catch basin, that holds rain and run-off water coming from Mandaue City’s neighbors such as Cebu City.
But because it was already silted and with the presence of water lilies, the water tended to backflow to Sto. Niño Village which is located at the back of the wetland. The area is being monitored by the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office and Housing Urban and Development Office, he said.
“Dili mataro’ng og limpyo ang wetland area tungod sa mga fish pens,” said Ibañez.
It can be recalled that the village which serves as a boundary between Mandaue and Cebu City experienced massive flooding last September 13 after the retaining wall of the fish pond collapsed.
Drainage Clean-Up
Aside from clearing the fish pond, other initiatives were also undertaken to address the flooding problem.
Currently, the Task Force APAS continues to conduct the desilting and declogging of drainages and manholes choked with garbage.
When there is heavy rain, they immediately position submersible pumps, to help drain the flood.
READ: Girl, playing in the rain, dies after she fell into a canal, got swept inside a culvert in Mandaue
The task force is also monitoring other problem areas such as Lopez Jaena St., A.S Fortuna St., Rolling Hills, and A.C Cortes Avenue near UCLM.
But Ibañez said that these were only immediate and temporary solutions. Mandaue City’s long-term plan is to complete its drainage projects and comprehensive drainage master plan.
“Kay kani atoang task force karun kung dili ni ubanan sa atoang long term solution, magkadugay magkakusog, magkadagko ang volume sa tubig,” said Ibañez.
The task force is comprised of personnel from the City Legal Office (CLO), the City Administrator’s Office (CAO), the City Engineering Office (CEO), and the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office among others. /rcg
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