Wenceslao: Sinkhole, Navarro

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

THAT sinkhole in Barangay Camboang, Dumanjug is actually not as scary as the one that showed up in Guatemala City in 2010.

The Dumanjug sinkhole is only 10 meters by 8.5 meters wide and 3.5 meters deep. It’s not what you call “gaping.” In photographs, it “only” looks like a bigger version of the potholes that dot the South Road Properties (SRP)-portion of the Cebu South Coastal Road and scare motorists daily.

Compare this with the Guatemala sinkhole. It was about 18 meters wide and was as deep as a building 30 stories high. Google for the photo of that sinkhole, which lay in the middle of an urban area, and you’ll be scared, especially if you imagine yourself slipping into it.

Sinkholes are natural depressions that are formed when something heavy, like water-saturated soil, exerts pressure on the dome of, say, a cave, causing it to collapse. In the Dumanjug case, the collapse of the dome of the existing void must have been partly caused by the shaking of the ground from the recent earthquake that hit Negros Oriental.

Usually, sinkholes are filled up with large rocks and other debris to prevent accidents. That’s obviously difficult to do in the case of the Guatemala sinkhole, considering its depth. But that can be done in Dumanjug because the sinkhole there is shallow. But first a “ground penetrating radar system” should determine with certainty the width and depth of the sinkhole.

Meaning, officials of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) 7 should find ways to bring to Dumanjug the said equipment, which is reportedly only available in MGB Manila.

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Michael Ralota, president of the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) in Cebu City is acting like a child being introduced to a hated half-brother. He complained when told that Mayor Michael Rama is tapping the services of Punta Princesa Barangay Captain Jose Navarro as liaison officer for the ABC.

Ralota, ex-officio member of the City Council, is with the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) while Navarro is with the opposition.

“I am the ABC president and I am able to do my responsibility without the help of Navarro, who is already blacklisted by the ABC,” Ralota said. Navarro has not been paying his barangay’s annual contribution to the ABC, which is not surprising because the ABC in the city is a BOPK enclave.

Rama must be amused no end by Ralota’s reaction. It means the plan does not sit well with the BOPK headed by former mayor Tomas Osmeña, Rama’s harsh critic. As they say, the enemy of your enemy is your friend. Navarro, being the “enemy” of Osmeña, is therefore Rama’s friend for now.

The entry of Navarro is a sign that Rama is starting to prepare for his reelection bid next year presumably against Osmeña. The mayor may be with the Liberal Party but he may have to partly rely on the opposition party Kugi Uswag Sugbo (Kusug) of former mayor Alvin Garcia.

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My uncle Genn Wenceslao of Dike in Tudela town in the Camotes group of islands succumbed last Sunday to lung cancer. Tiyo Genn led a colorful life and lived life his way. His most recent major undertaking was to campaign in Tudela for then presidential candidate Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III in 2010.

May his soul find eternal repose.

(khanwens@yahoo.com)