MANILA, Philippines – Sa gitna ng pagdagsa ng substandard steel reinforcement bars o rebars sa pamilihan, hiniling ni Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III sa Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) na tugisin at iimbestigahan ang manufacturers at importers, saka susupendihin ang kanilang permits at licenses.
Ipinanawagan ito ni Pimentel matapos matuklasan ng DTI at Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) ang substandard ng rebar sa Mindanao at Northern Luzon.
“We should revoke their permits and tighten quality control measures to limit the importation of substandard rebars. Alam naman natin kung saan galing ‘yan. Kailangang may managot at nang hindi tularan ng ibang manufacturers and importers,” ayon kay Pimentel.
Sinabi ni Pimentel na napapanahon na tugisin ang mga steel manufacturers at importers sa pagbebenta ng low-quality construction materials na magdudulot ng banta sa public safety.
“The use of these low-quality construction materials could compromise the structural integrity of construction projects such as private houses that use substandard rebars,” aniya.
Pinapurihan din ni Pimentel at DTI at PISI sa pagkilos kaya’t dapat pumalaot ang gobyerno pagkatapos ng test-buys.
“These substandard rebars and all other low-quality materials could put lives at risk. The DTI and PISI should conduct nationwide test-buy operations and crackdown on manufacturers, sellers and importers,” ani Pimentel.
Sa pinakahuling test-buy operation na isinagawa ng DTI at PISI mula sa hardware stores sa Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Zamboanga del Norte, Samal Island, Cotabato City, Pagadian City, at Iligan City sa pagitan ng September 9 at 13, natuklasabn na hindi nakamit ng rebars ang minimum standard para sa timbang at maaaring madaling masira.
Natuklasan din nila ang substandard rebar sa Northern Luzon.
“The steel industry had found substandard rebars in random test buys in Mindanao last September, just a few weeks after finding the same problem in its July test buys in Northern Luzon,” ayon kay PISI sa news reports.
“Based on the information gathered from the test buys, the inferior rebars are enough to build more than 10,000 houses per month, putting at risk up to 30,000 people,” giit pa ng PISI.
Kasabay nito, dapat tiyakin ng gobyerno partikular ang Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), na walang substandard rebars o anumang construction materials ang gagamitin sa infrastructure projects, partkkular ang pagtatayo ng public roads, bridges, schools, at buildings. Ernie Reyes