Senators on Tuesday questioned the Department of Public Works and Highways over its alleged fixation on repairing roads that are still functional.

During the budget deliberation of the Senate Committee on Finance on the DPWH's proposed P821.107 billion budget for 2024, Senators Ronald "Bato dela Rosa and Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito raised this question to the department.

"How can we prevent the public from thinking that the DPWH is prioritizing fixing roads that are still functioning instead of those that were damaged?" Dela Rosa asked in Filipino.

"I know it is just a small thing, but it is irritating on the part of the public. They must be thinking that the government's funds were being wasted," he added.

Responding to the lawmaker's question, DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan said that road repairs were for "preventive maintenance" and "reconstruction."

"It's a very technical issue. It is actually [for] preventive maintenance and reconstruction. There is a point when the road starts to deteriorate and it would be more economical to undertake preventive maintenance," Bonoan explained.

"There are some roads that still look good in your eyes but actually the pavements start to deteriorate. So, it would be more economical to repave it at that point in time so we can save the base and sub-base," he added.

For his part, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III, said Bonoan's explanation was "hard to believe".

"It was a very technical answer. It was hard to believe. It goes against the inputs of our senses because your eyes can see that is still good, yet you will say that its underneath is deteriorating," Pimentel said.

"And yet when we see damaged roads, the DPWH is not acting on it," he added.

Pimentel then asked Bonoan if the agency has an existing "flow chart" that will follow schedules of repair of roads and bridges in the country.

In response, Bonoan said the department has a computer system that monitors the conditions of roads and bridges across the country, which he said is the basis for the programs that his department is currently implementing.

"We now have a good inventory of the conditions of the roads and the bridges as well. We have a pavement management system which tells us what is now the condition of the road, the same goes with bridges," he said.

"It's a little more systematic now this time," he added.

Asphalt overlay

Meanwhile, Ejercito inquired about the lifespan of asphalt roads and short-span bridges, which he said had been rehabilitated by the department multiple times in a short span of time.

"What is our policy on this? You mentioned Mr. Secretary that asphalt roads should have a lifespan of 15 years," he said, citing the Blumentritt road in Manila as an example.

"In less than five years, it had three to four times asphalt overlay and it's already crispy and as high as the sidewalk," he added.

Bonoan said asphalt overlay should be done every 15 years while short-span bridges should be retrofitted every 30 years.