I WAS invited by a non-government organization to bring my assemblage to a coastal clean-up in one of the local government units. My friend, one of the organizers, told me that this is one of their special projects in 2018. “This is assisted by local and national groups.”
During the briefing, we were told by the bellwether that this “shoreline village” is very grateful because we are here to help.
The intention of the non-government organization is noble. The goal of the volunteers is magnanimous... to save the environment and to safeguard the health of the villagers.
This is good but I believe that this is just a reaction to what other people did.
A few years back, I was given the opportunity to talk to a group of representatives attending a unity forum for the environment sponsored by several government agencies spearheaded by DENR.
I told them that this clean-up drive every Earth Day Celebration, Earth Hour Observance, Charter Anniversary, Environment Week and other similar events are just token activities of what could have been done religiously.
Why are our shorelines loaded with garbage? One does not need to be a lawyer, doctor of philosophy or a master environmentalist to understand the cause.
Some of our environment officers, barangay officials, local and national government agencies and even our “Bantay-Suba” and “Bantay-Dagat” task forces have not given a serious commitment to their sacred calling.
We all know that most of the residents along the streams, creeks, and river banks are just simply throwing their garbage to the water and the water flow ends up in the sea.
If our “protectors” of the environment want to see reality, they should conduct a familiarization tour to check how many of these houses have their toilets having direct outlets to the water. If this happened in Boracay, this could happen anywhere in the Philippines.
It is a sad fact but we also eat garbage and waste. The common seafood we eat just live in the shallow water along the shoreline... talaba, tahong, green shells, gusaw, asuos, shrimps, crabs, dalo-dalo, gamia, and even our favorite alimusan and alimango. We have no choice. We have eaten back our own garbage and waste.
Most of the public markets of our LGUs do not have treatment facilities. The dirty, odorous, murky water goes to the drainage, to the creeks, to the rivers, and to the sea. This is complemented by the garbage and toxic water from the factories. Even here in Negros, the water in the river after the sugar mill is usually Class C.
I do not say that our environment officers are not doing their job. Many of them are my good friends. The public wants to see a job very well done... not just rare or medium rare.
I pity the NGOs and their international partners. Our advocacy should not be just once or twice a year. Proper garbage disposal should become a way of life and a spiritual commitment.
Garbage pollutes the environment and has even become a political issue. I want to see government officials who are raising their hands to confirm that their LGUs have proper garbage segregation at the source and at the sanitary landfill.
In the future, we want to hear that the Vatican has canonized a Filipino politician for having been a martyr for the sake of proper garbage disposal.
We would like to encourage the NGOs and the volunteers involved in the crusade for coastal clean-up to continue their sacred intention and to strengthen further their advocacy by encouraging lawmakers to pass a law that would disqualify politicians for their reelection if they cannot be heroes in the proper garbage disposal.
In our towns and cities, we do not just need excellent fiscal managers. We need leaders who can protect the environment to give assurance to the next generation that what God created is just slightly altered.