ISOLATED. A portion of Maslog town in Eastern Samar. It will soon be connected to the national highway through a PHP300 million budget that will complete the last segment of a proposed road stretch. (Photo courtesy of Maslog LGU)
DOLORES, Eastern Samar – The isolated town of Maslog, Eastern Samar will soon be connected to the national highway through the last segment of a proposed road stretch worth PHP300 million.
A groundbreaking ceremony on Monday marked the start of the road concreting project for the remaining unpaved portion of the Carolina-Dolores-Maslog Road.
Maslog Mayor Heraclio Santiago said town residents are excited for the full completion of the project.
“Since time immemorial, we have been isolated. Once this road is complete, this will facilitate development and address poverty, which is the root cause of insurgency,” Santiago added in an interview.
Merlie Oplado, 57, of Bulawan village, said a completed road means better access to education.
Currently, college students must travel through the Maslog River for about three to four hours and ride a motorcycle or jeepney to nearby Can-avid town, where the Eastern Samar State University satellite campus is located.
The travel time between the two towns will only be 45 minutes upon the completion of the project within this year.
Several sections of the road are concrete but more than four kilometers still need opening and concreting.
House Minority Leader and 4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan, who led the groundbreaking, said the project is a dream come true for Maslog.
“Due to climate change and global warming, this area is severely affected by flooding, which badly affects our farmers. That is why we need this road and bridge project to help them,” Libanan, a native of Eastern Samar, said in his message.
Maslog, a 5th-class town, is the least populated municipality in the Visayas with 5,463 as of 2020. (PNA)
