Feature: DPWH transform Basilan from arm to farm

For almost 40 years, 7000 hectares of agrarian land donated to farmers were almost useless and idle because it was almost impossible to access the farms.

With its isolation, it became the haven of the most dangerous lawless elements in the country.

But now the sun is rising for Basilan as the transcentral road being built by the ARMM Regional Government is opening up opportunities and livelihood for thousands in the former No Man’s Land at the center of Basilan island.

Sowing Seeds of Peace & Development

The long toiling decades of conflict caused great deprivation for the people of the island province of Basilan.

Since then, many were displaced and resources had been very limited for the inhabitants.

These had been the appalling situation before. But, times had changed.

The cooperation and unity forged by the residents, the men in uniform, and vision of the current leaders drastically changed the landscape.

From lands occupied by armed groups of Abu Sayyaf, the infrastructure development paved opportunities for crops to grow, for farmers to till the soil, for merchants to safely trade in the market centers, for children to attend schooling.

A remarkable vision that has been put into reality.

The seeds of peace sown into the hearts of the people created a new era of peace that many had dreamed of for a quite long. (Source: DPWH on the Road)

Nowadays:  Basilan will be the most progressive province of the Autonomous Region just  because the government through the Department of Public Works and Highways of  ARMM headed by Secretary Mustapha “Don” Loong  through the approval of Governor Mujiv Hataman that this province will raised up and  it will become a food basket province of the region because people here  voluntarily  lay down their arms and manage their own farms instead of fighting for nothing.

The seeds of peace that the DPWH planted. It was a big steps of the government to give an option to armed group to surrender just because the seeds of peace it was  already grew up their own homes and they started to picking it up and transform them to be a new one “ a new life for their families and next generation”.

The DPWH of Basilan under District Engineer Soler I. Undug assured the people and government that his working engineers will do the bests constructions in order to boost the living condition of the people of Basilan. (By: Becky D. de Asis/The Redline News)