KIDAPAWAN CITY – The United States (US) government will continue its road construction project in a town in Maguindanao despite the tension created by the massacre of 57 individuals including 30 journalists on November 23 in Ampatuan town of the said province.

Reports from the local government unit (LGU) of Pagalungan, a town in Maguindanao, said a group of US soldiers visited on Wednesday Municipal Mayor Datu Norodin Matalam where they discussed about the construction of an all-weather road in his town.

The road project, according to Bebot Maglangit of the local government of Pagalungan, will start in January next year.

“Amidst the suspension of some foreign-funded projects to Maguindanao and other provinces in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) as spawned by the Maguindanao massacre, the American government will continue its road project as scheduled,” according to Maglangit.

Capt. Walker Wayne of the Civil Affairs Team 712 of Task Force Mindanao paid a courtesy visit on Wednesday to the mayor Matalam town.

It was learned that Wayne informed the municipal mayor that the construction of the all-weather road connecting the municipal highway of Pagalungan to Barangay Kudal will start next month – January 2010.

Wayne has replaced the team of Capt. Janette Kautzman whose mission ended a few months back.

It was also learned that Wayne will do the markings on the site and visit the area in the coming days.

As this developed, the Matalam mayor has assured Wayne and his team of their security.

A group of soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will help secure their counterparts as they conduct site visitation next month.

The road project will cover some 11 kilometers cutting across at least four villages of Pagalungan.

“If completed, it will give easy access to the farmers in the area to transport their products to different market destinations in nearby towns and other areas,” said Maglangit.