Samar fishing community gets KALAHI project inaugurated

By NINFA B. QUIRANTE (PIA Samar)
September 23, 2007

CATBALOGAN CITY, Samar  –  Some 150 fisherfolks rejoiced over the cruising of KALAHI CIDSS to this fishing community safely hidden in the mangroves of the Samar Sea.

Barangay Dapdap, known before as Tinago availed of a close to a million worth of causeway (a concrete seawall-cum-pathway) of more than a kilometer stretch leading to the barangay from the mangroves.

Started late in December 2006, the project was turned-over on September 19, 2007 to the residents.

It would have been a water system, said Maria Sevilla, the Punong Barangay. But due to the absence of a source that could sufficiently supply the population, it was considered technically impossible, said Bel Villarin, KALAHI coordinator.

Being next in the list, they opted for the causeway.

Just how important to the fisherfolks is the causeway?

During low tide, the shores of Dapdap become dry, yet muddy and the long stretch from the shores makes the tired and sunkissed fisher folks seem impossible to traverse, besides, goods purchased from the town of Tarangnan seem heavier with traversing the muddy one-kilometer path to their homes.

With the concrete causeway, jutting out to deeper sea-water, boats can now anchor safely at the end of the causeway and walking on foot despite heavy load becomes easier. No more mud-wading, said Bobet, a fisherman in his 40’s.

While life is kinder to the people of Dapdap who toiled in the sea and the upland farm, basic services like better road to connect them to the highway has been remiss here. Folks would pay P100 to ‘habal-habal’ to be transported to the highway.

Or one would opt to cross the turbulent seas to Tarangnan, riskier but cheaper. Water system is also wanting, though KALAHI has been thinking solving this basic need of man.

Villarin said that Dapdap folks have undergone willingly, the 16 steps KALAHI proposed for sub-projects realization.

They have met, argued, eased fine tuned rough edges of their project, compromised and succeeded. The barangay also shelled out funds for counterpart, aside from the labor and the municipal counterpart.