A highway of
international standards, too

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor GUILLERMO TEJIDA III Desk Editor NANETTE L. GUADALQUIVER Busines Editor CEDELF P. TUPAS Sports Editor (On Leave) RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

The decision of the top officials of the province and the cities involved to set the date for the opening of the new Bacolod-Silay Airport in November is a very welcome one to the residents of the towns and cities here. We hope they can accomplish the completion of the required facilities and infrastructure and meet the target they have set for themselves.

The President, and the national officials who were with her in that first look-see at the new airport site, must have been appalled by the condition of the highway leading to it when they traveled on it last Friday.

Aside from the very narrow road where one turns from the main highway in Silay in order to get to the site, much of the way is still over what can only be described as dirt roads, offering a rather bumpy and dusty ride where one can hardly see a few meters ahead because of the swirling dust. One can only imagine how the visitors would have looked upon reaching the site if they were not riding in airconditioned vehicles.

What has happened in the construction of the new airport is typical example of the lack of planning and foresight when it was started. Anybody, even those without knowledge or background in engineering or construction, could see that, since this was new territory, a new access would be needed to get to it. It now looks as if, in their haste to get the building started, those in charge must have thought nobody would notice this lack or deficiency until it would be too late, and the government would be forced to shell out the additional millions to build the necessary access road.

Who is to blame, and where are the fingers pointing? One can hardly call this the project of Bacolod City or just Silay City since it is the national government that had initiated and funded it. But, as earlier noted, the time for finger-pointing is over, what must be done now is to see to it that the structure will not stand as another white elephant until the very vital adjunct, which is the road - also of international standards, as the airport is touted to be - is also in place.*