Maintenance and Operation of the Cotabato River Wharf in Cotabato City

August 11, 1978

LETTER OF INSTRUCTIONS NO. 730

WHEREAS, it is essential to promote the smooth flow of commerce, transport and communication in Mindanao in order to hasten the region's rehabilitation and speedy return to normalcy; casia

WHEREAS, the Cotabato River Wharf in Cotabato City has traditionally been a port for the movement of people and goods in the riparian areas of Central Mindanao, and is expected to continue to be such even after the opening of the new port at Polloc, Parang, Maguindanao;

WHEREAS, in recent years the navigational channel leading to the Cotabato River Wharf has accumulated silt which renders the channel a hazard to navigation, thus hampering the flow of goods and people to Cotabato City and environs;

WHEREAS, this situation has contributed to inundations of farmlands and residential areas along the Mindanao River and the tributaries during the rainy seasons, thus bringing about destruction to crops and properties;

WHEREAS, there is also a need to institute effective systems of flood control so as to minimize, if not eliminate, this destruction thereby assuring the people in the environs of the river and its tributaries the benefit of nature and the fruits of their labors; and

WHEREAS, it is the interest of the government, and the country as a whole, that efforts be extended to accelerate the development of Mindanao;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, hereby issue the following instructions:

1. The Philippine Ports Authority is hereby tasked to maintain and operate the Cotabato River Wharf and to dredge the navigation channel from the wharf downstream to the open sea. For this purpose, the Philippine Ports Authority is hereby authorized, if necessary and expedient in the public's interest, to enter into contract with any reputable firm to dredge the river, subject, however, to public bidding and other applicable government regulations. acd

2. The Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communications, through the Bureau of Public Works, shall be tasked with the establishment of systems of flood control and the dredging of the river upstream from the wharf for the two-fold purpose of aiding navigation and preventing the river from over-flowing its banks. Along this line, the MPWTC is instructed to hasten the construction of the Simuay River diversion channel.

3. The Minister of Budget is hereby directed to allocate from any available funds the amount necessary for the implementation of these instructions for my approval.

4. The Regional Commissioner, Region XII, is hereby tasked to monitor the development hereof as well as to submit a bi-monthly report of accomplishment to the Office of the President.

5. The Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communications and the Philippine Ports Authority shall submit a status report of their respective accomplishments in the specific tasks assigned to them in these instructions within six (6) months from the date hereof.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 11th day of August, in the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Seventy-Eight. cd i