ESTANCIA Iloilo, (PNA) – Residents of this municipality witnessed Saturday President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo leading the groundbreaking rites for the P30-million expansion and improvement project of the Estancia Water District that would ensure the supply soon of potable water supply in the area.

The President was in Barangay Bayuyan, Estancia, together with Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) Chair Prospero Pichay, Iloilo Gov. Niel D. Tupas, Mayor Restituto Mosqueda and Estancia Water District Manager Rodney Agregado.

Agregado disclosed that water supply has been a perennial problem in Estancia because it has no watershed and no surface water.

“This (the water project) is a big help for residents of Estancia, especially those who cannot afford to buy bottled water,” he said.

He added that the water district at present serves eight barangays, but these areas are not yet fully saturated.

Only about 25 percent of the population are being served at present, Agregado said, adding that the target is to increase the coverage to 70 percent once the project is completed.

With the expansion project, the water district looks forward to install another 1,500 connections and at the same time cover the remaining waterless areas of the eight barangays.

Meanwhile, Felicisima Paciente, a barangay health worker of Barangay Cano-an, expressed appreciation for Government’s help in the project.

She said that although they have deep wells and jetmatic pumps as their sources of water, it would even be better if they get their water from the water district because “we would be assured of safer water.”

Warlito Lamigo, 58, of Barangay Sta. Ana, shared the same sentiment as Paciente, saying the project is very useful to them.

Mayor Mosqueda, meantime, said some 3,000 households stand to benefit from the project.

Pichay said the fund for the project is loan and grant combination, that is, P25 million is a grant from LWUA while the remaining P5 million is in a form of a loan.

“This is part of the President’s 10-point agenda. Before her term ends, there will be a 100 percent water connection in every municipality in the country,” Pichay said. “This is a tall order but we are doing our best at LWUA because this is a good program and because water is a basic need.”