By DANNY O. SAGUN

IT’S good District Engineer Rodolfo Dion defined the scope of work of the road maintenance crew along the national roads during the media briefing on road users’ tax last Tuesday at the De Luxe restaurant in Tapuac last Tuesday.

He said the men are not paid just to cut or pull grasses by the roadsides but they have other things to do like clearing the drainage system and leveling road shoulders and fixing ruts.

We raised the issue during the media forum because of the usual scene along the national roads – men in blue T-shirts pulling grasses day in, day out. Yet there are many things to fix along the roads – dangerous shoulders which are some two to three inches lower than the main road, dirty canals or clogged drainage systems, cracks, ruts and potholes which may be temporarily covered with soil or sand and gravel. At around past 10 when the heat of the sun is quite unbearable already, you can see them under the trees idling their time away.

If we are not mistaken, the crew is supplied by the barangays being traversed by the national roads. The workers were picked by the barangay captain or recommended by local officials. We don’t know the mode of payment, but we understand that the money comes from the DPWH.

The idea is to provide employment even temporarily to the least fortunate families in the barangays, which to us is commendable. But to realize more fully the intent of the project., i.e., to make our highways spic and span and remove dangers in them, the DPWH and the local officials concerned should monitor closely the daily activities of the assigned crews. Otherwise, we are just throwing money away to fill the pockets of few individuals without anything in return. They should do their assigned tasks for which they are paid for.
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Another issue raised during the forum which was sponsored by the Philippine Information Agency in coordination with the DPWH and the Land Transportation Office was the common practice of placing humps on the roads.
I
n our neighboring barangay, humps were placed every 50-meter distance, so big that a motorist would curse as he passes by out of frustration. Motorists with lowered vehicles like cars having sideskirts could only scratch their heads in disgust.

The good engineer admitted that humps are not allowed not only in national highways but in all roads, except perhaps those in private areas like subdivisions.

But humps are a common sight in many barangays, even in some provincial roads. Humps, it is claimed, prevent accidents as motorists will be forced to drive slowly. These also discourage theft as vehicle-riding thieves could hardly speed off. Such claims may be acceptable, but putting humps is a violation of the law.

Now, who will enforce the law? Even DE Dion could not directly tell us. The Boy Scouts, perhaps, sir?