Guv: Access roads to help solve insurgency problem

THE government cannot address the problem of insurgency in Eastern Visayas as long as road accessibility in the region does not exist, said Leyte Governor Jericho Petilla in the dialogue with representatives from the World Bank and Millennium Challenge Corporation.

Petilla cited the three provinces in the island of Samar, which are rich in mineral deposits and have a potential for eco-tourism development, yet remain economically depressed partly due to insurgency problem.

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The lack of roads that connect the three provinces of Samar and their interior towns to the national highways had caused the residents in remote towns to support the insurgents.

This problem, said Petilla, is the focus of the current officials of the Regional Development Council and the Regional Peace and Order Council before their term ends.

However, insurgency is not just a problem of Samar provinces.

According to Petilla, Leyte also experiences the said problem that is why his administration is also focusing in the implementation of various road network projects.

“We are prioritizing the areas where insurgency or road network is badly needed,” Petilla said.

Although road networks may help in solving insurgency, Petilla said other government programs can also provide assistance in solving the problem.

Among the programs of the National Government that may help address insurgency is the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program and the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (Kalahi-CIDSS).

CCT and Kalahi-CIDSS, according to Petilla, focus on individuals that have less in life, mostly residing in rural and hinterlands, by providing them cash incentives which they can use for their children and health needs.

“These two projects can provide behavioral control such that we will tell the people (supporters of insurgents) that if they will continue supporting the insurgents we will not grant them the benefits that CCT and Kalahi-CIDSS offers,” Petilla said.