PREVIOUSLY, we talked about the proposed project of the Iloilo City government and the major players of the public utilities provider of “I Am Iloilo City” i.e. Smart and Globe Communications, PLDT, Sky Cable and MORE Power to relocate all the “unsightly and dangerous spaghetti wires” along Calle Real.
Lo and behold, that proposal is no longer a pipe dream but a reality that’s actually going to happen sooner than later.
Excerpts from the Jan. 20, 2023 issue of Panay News:
SP oks cable undergrounding ordinance
The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) unanimously approved an ordinance placing underground all electrical and telecommunication wires and cables within the confines of plaza complexes, Sun Burst Park and all heritage properties in this city.
Approved during Wednesday’s regular session, the ordinance covers all public electric utility companies, telecommunication carriers and other similar entities engaged in the business of providing telephone, cable, internet service, and power supply.
“The City of Iloilo is confronted with unsightly dangling/sagging and inactive cables and wires of electric, telephone and cable companies that seriously pose danger to pedestrians, vehicles and inhabitants of the city,” read part of the ordinance authored by Councilor Romel Duron, chairman of the committee on public utilities.
The ordinance encompasses all the plaza complexes, Sun Burst Park, B.S. Aquino Avenue in Mandurriao district, and all protected cultural and heritage properties in the city as determined in Resolution No. 2019-248 and Resolutions 2018-01, 2019-06 and 2019-07 which declared the properties listed therein as protected cultural and heritage properties of Iloilo City.
The estimated cost of the said undergrounding, according to the Public Utilities Group of Iloilo City (PUGI), is P96 million at no cost to the city government.
“The cost for placing underground the electrical and telecommunication wires and cables including the restoration of the excavated streets/sidewalks shall be charged to the concerned public electric utility companies and public telecommunication carriers servicing the city of Iloilo,” Section 7 of the ordinance stipulated.
It was mentioned in an initial agreement to split the estimated total cost of P150 million for the underground project, with MORE Power shouldering P96 million and the telcos paying for P54 million.
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According to the said ordinance, the cost of the underground project is P96 million, which means MORE Power (correct me if I’m wrong) will bear the whole cost of the project, not that it presents any problem considering the few billion pesos already in place as capital expenditure of MORE Power’s five-year rehabilitation and upgrading of the power distribution system of Iloilo City.
Indeed, MORE Power will be quite comfortable spending the P96 million.
The implementation of this underground project is expected to begin this year starting with the wires along Calle Real and the plazas, according to Mayor Jerry Treñas.
According to Roel Castro, president and chief executive officer of MORE Power, this underground project is scheduled to start late April this year initially along the streets of Calle Real.
The ordinance also mandated Task Force Alambre and its oversight committee to ensure the continuous compliance of the stakeholders.
They are expected to establish coordinative and working relationship among members of the team, supervise and monitor the full implementation of the ordinance, and recommend additional provisions or actions that will promote and strengthen the objectives of the ordinance.
And without so much fanfare, concrete plans for an underground cable, telecommunication and electrical system in selected areas in “I Am Iloilo City” are already underway.
This is a dream come true for all the natives of “I Am Iloilo City”. Finally, Calle Real, plazas and other heritage sites will be rid of these unsightly “spaghetti wires” not only for aesthetics but for the safety and continued uninterrupted electrical, cable, and telephone services.
After almost a century under that previous power distribution utility, it took a MORE Power to initiate, undertake and finance this historic project.
With MORE Power at the helm, come Dinagyang 2024, Iloilo City’s Calle Realwill truly be the standard of heritage sites in the country./PN
