SP oks settlement pact with DITO

THROUGH an ordinance, the 20th City Council, in its regular session Monday presided over by Vice Mayor Bebot Rodriguez, enacted an ordinance authorizing City Mayor Rolando A. Uy to enter and sign the Settlement Agreement with DITO Telecommunity Corporation covering the Restoration Project for Coral Reef that was damaged by the installation of DITO’s submarine fiber optic cable in Barangay Bonbon amounting to P1,400,000.

In June 2022, DITO constructed an underwater cable enclosed in metal tubing of approximately 100 meters and secured in metal clamps staked into coral colonies within Barangay Bonbon's marine protected areas (MPA).

However, in July 2022, a composite team comprised of the DENR-Region 10, BFAR-Region 10, CLENRO, and the Office of the City Agriculturist conducted a monitoring dive and recorded various coral damages, including abrasions on massive corals, dislodgement of branching corals, and fragmentation of branching coral forms.

In line with this, the Office of the City Agriculturist prepared the necessary Restoration Project for Coral Reef Damage in Bonbon for the coral reef restoration cost and activities of P1,624,630, as well as the monitoring cost for 45 years (for four divers and fuel) of P1,260,000, for a total of P2,884,630.

Following a series of communications between the city government representatives and DITO, as well as its independent contractor, Huawei Marine Technologies (in charge of installing the underwater cable/submarine fiber optic cables), an agreement was reached, with DITO agreeing to pay P1,400,000, The Gavel learned.

Under the settlement, the city shall acknowledge and accept the payment as full and final settlement of all claims, demands, actions, and liabilities arising out or in connection with the dispute, among others.

The legislation was sponsored by the Committees on Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and on Laws and Rules respectively chaired by Councilor Christian Rustico M. Achas and Councilor Edgar S. Cabanlas. (JAOclarit/SP)