Telecommunications companies and utility firms in Cebu City have agreed to invite Mayor Michael Rama to a walk-through this week to show their accomplishment on removing redundant poles and dangling wires and implementing the one-pole policy in intersections of the city.
Yesterday, May 1, was the deadline given by the mayor to the companies to completely address the dangling wires problem, which was the primary cause of some road accidents and several deaths last year.
“They suggested to do it by way of a walk-through. It would be more appreciated if there are actual sites that will be seen. They have proposed to the mayor to do the walk-through to validate their claim that they’ve done something,” said City Engineer Jose Marie Poblete.
Poblete, who heads the city’s Technical Infrastructure Committee (TIC), said they had a meeting with the different telcos and utility firms last Friday and decided on the walk-through. Poblete said the tentative schedule for the activity is on May 6.
The activity with the mayor will start at the Plaza Independencia going to M.J. Cuenco Ave., Imus St., then D. Jakosalem St. and back at City Hall.
The agreement to remove dangling wires and unused poles, and to implement the one-pole policy covers the entire central business district of the city.
In June and July, there were some cases of vehicles snagging dangling overhead wires which resulted in a poles toppling down and killing a boy and two women, in separate incidents.
This prompted an inquiry by the City Council as well as a meeting called by Rama with the companies concerned wherein they signed a handwritten agreement to address the problem by October last year.
But when the October deadline lapsed and the mayor found out that only 10 percent of the agreement had been implemented by the companies, the mayor threatened that the city would cut down the poles if they failed to accomplish what had been previously agreed upon.
Rama gave them another deadline, which lapsed yesterday, a few days before the May 9 elections.
The companies were also made to give a status report on their accomplishment last February where they reported that they have removed 95 out of the 865 redundant poles in the central business district as of February 29.