BONTOC, Mountain Province – The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) decided to lift the nearly 5-year cease and desist order (CDO) it previously issued that prevented the previous administration from implementing the rehabilitation of the Provincial Capital building to pave the way for the eventual realization of the project.
In his letter to Gov. Bonifacio Lacwasan, Jr., NHCP Acting Executive Director Ludovico D. Badoy stated that after the Commission’s careful review of the proposal of the provincial government to restore and rehabilitate the Provincial Capital building, the NHCP is now amenable to the submitted latest restoration plan, thus, the lifting of the CDA.
“You may now implement the approved restoration plan such as the restore and retrofit the old remaining section of the Provincial Capital building for its preservation; reconstruct the demolished portion based on the original plan and authentic features of the old building and install shoring to ensure to secure the structural integrity of the old building, especially the existing foundation that might be affected by the adjoining reconstruction works,” Badoy stated in his letter.
He added that the NHCP would appreciate receiving updates from the provincial government regarding the development of the multi-million project and that the local government was required to submit to the Commission a complete documentation before, during and after the completion of the restoration and reconstruction of the Provincial Capital building for its reference.
It can be recalled that the NHCP issued a CDO dated February 25, 2013 that prevented the provincial government from pursing the implementation of the restoration and reconstruction of the Provincial Capitol building considering that it will allegedly destroy the authentic state of the structure considering that it was declared to be with historical value.
The NHCP required the provincial government to provide the Commission with the updated restoration and reconstruction plans of the project for evaluation, assessment and review whether or not it will comply with the stringent guidelines for the improvements of structures that were previously declared to be with historical value.
The Commission recognized the efforts of the provincial government to comply with the required submission of the pertinent documents supporting the implementation of the multi-million project that is geared towards putting up a 4-storey structure that will improve the state of the government structure located at the heart of the capital town.
Gov. Lacwasan expressed his gratitude to the NHCP for finding merit to the submitted updated restoration and reconstruction plans of the Provincial Capital building because it will pave the way for the completion of the project that will improve the state of the structure and to allow the public to have convenience in transacting with the different offices of the local government.
“We are elated over the positive decision of the NHCP in lifting the cease and desist order against the project. Now, we will have a chance to prove our critics wrong because we will be implementing the project to enhance the authenticity of the original structure,” Lacwasan stressed.
By HENT