NPA-cleared village in Isabela gets water system project

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – Residents in Barangay Sikatuna, Isabela, Negros Occidental will now have access to potable water supply.

This, after the Philippine Army Finance Center Producers Integrated Cooperative (PAFCPIC) through the 62nd Infantry Battalion (IB) turned over an Elevated Water Tank to the said barangay in a ceremony graced by Mayor Irene Montilla, Colonel Marces Gayat, deputy commander, Civil-Military Operations Regiment (CMOR), and Lieutenant Colonel William Pesase Jr., 62nd IB commander yesterday.

According to the Army, lack of potable water is one of the prevailing issues identified by the Community Support Team (CSP) of the 62nd IB in the area.

The groundbreaking of the water system project was held on August 16, and the construction started on September 2.

Barangay Captain Dionaldo Asuncion thanked PAFCPIC and the Army for providing them with a water system project.

“Despite the mountainous terrain of our barangay, the project still reached us. You did not abandon us, and you found a way to provide us with support,” Asuncion said in a statement.

In his message, Brigadier General Orlando Edralin, commander of the 303rd Infantry Brigade (IBde), said the collective effort and cooperation have yielded significant success for the community.

This project is a major step towards enhancing health and progress in the barangay, Edralin said, adding that through collaboration, they are not only creating a water system but also laying the foundation for hope and positive change for the people.

For his part, Major General Marion Sison, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division (ID), commended the 303rd IBde, 62nd IB, and partner stakeholders for their collaborative effort that resulted in the completion and turnover of the said project.

“I commend the concerned units and partners for their crucial support in quick-impact projects like this water system, addressing issues in communities, particularly those in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas and formerly conflict-ridden villages such as Sikatuna,” Sison said in a statement.

Sikatuna is one of the eight insurgency-cleared villages in the town and also a recipient of the Local Government Support Fund-Support to Barangay Development Program (LGSF-SBDP) of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).