Sec. Villar claims roads are in good condition, amid reported potholes in major thoroughfares

Public Works Secretary Mark Villar on Monday said the Philippines’ roads are in good condition overall, even as potholes were reported in several major roads following the heavy rains brought about by Typhoon Fabian and the Southwest Monsoon (Habagat).

According to Villar, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will seek to repair any potholes on major roads, if there are any.

“Tuloy tuloy naman ang ating pagre-repair kung mayroon mang mga potholes. Kasama sa budget namin ‘yung pagre-repair ng mga damages sa ating mga kalsada,” he said during the Laging Handa public briefing.

“Overall, maganda ang kondisyon ng ating mga kalsada. Makapal ‘yung mga road thickness, so pang-ano talaga, pang-heavy duty ang ating mga kalsada,” he added.

[Our repair works are continuous, if ever there are any potholes. Our budget includes provisions to repair road damages. Overall, our roads are in good condition. We have good road thickness. Our roads are really for heavy duty.]

His remarks come as major thoroughfares across the country were flooded over the weekend, including G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City which was damaged by the heavy downpour.

“Kung mayroon mang mga damages sa mga local or national roads, aayusin din namin sila sa madaling panahon,” Villar said.

[If there are any damages in our local or national roads, we will fix them immediately.]

Villar is set to attend President Rodrigo Duterte’s final State of the Nation Address (SONA) at the Batasang Pambansa on Monday, where the President could talk about his ambitious infrastructure program. —KG, GMA News