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Tuesday, October 12, 2004
Roxas: City's local fire, safety officials should be charged
By Fred Roxas
BEWARE, businessmen... a pack of extortionists masquerading as mediamen are going around the corporate offices in Pampanga demanding money in exchange of some purported information detrimental to the owners of the business, usually some tax anomaly. This columnist has a businesswoman friend who was recently approached by these media scalawags. She stood her ground and challenged them to sue her in court, if she indeed had misdeclared tax returns. Rebuffed, the extortionists then asked for fare money. Pathetic.
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The rift between former political partners Mayor Oscar Rodriguez of the City of San Fernando and his predecessor to the mayorship and successor Congressman Rey Aquino took a more bitter turn when city hall wrote the congressman, asking him to explain some P24 million being claimed by suppliers of computer units, books and office supplies on top of other claims by some restaurants as having been incurred by the city government at the time of Aquino. This is getting "curioser and curioser" as one wag said.
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The offices of the mayor and the police in Angeles City have yet to take actions on the complaints of residents on the invasion with impunity of the city's sidewalks by vendors, hawkers and traders, mostly transients/migrants from the south Muslim areas. The illegal occupation of sidewalks appears to have been tolerated by civil and police officials. These areas, many observe, are a source of political support and "tong", even in other thriving communities like Guagua, Mabalacat and Apalit and the City of San Fernando. Because of the illegal occupation of sidewalks, pedestrians spill out to the streets and put them to risks, at the same time congesting vehicular traffic. When will local officials, including the police, act for the welfare and safety of pedestrians?
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The ineptness of vital government agencies, a general weakness of governance in the Philippines, surfaced again in Pampanga, taking toll on eight lives in a fire in the City of San Fernando recently. The local fire department blames the building owners for their negligence while the latter blames the usual incompetence and unpreparedness of the former for the tragedy.
While the two kept blaming each other, they forgot that a third party is inevitably responsible for the conflagration, which engulfed the iron-grilled four-storey grocery store cum residential building. This is the city government, which officials concerned in building design and fire safety requirements were remiss and flagrantly negligent in their responsibilities. Why did the city government issue a renewal of the business license and mayor's permit when the building was a fire hazard?
After every big fire tragedy has occurred, fire authorities always blame lack of firefighting facilities and work equipment. The building owners identified the late response of some firefighters, who in turn blamed the excessive heat for their failure to put the flames under control in a shorter time, attributed inadequate gear and equipment for their effective performance.
City Hall officials involved in the inspection, approval and final recommendation for a mayor's permit on this unsafe building should be included in the investigation and must answer for their participation.
Like in all accidents and tragic events arising out of criminal neglect by government authorities, this San Fernando fire will be another forgotten episode after some months. No fire department official or city engineering official is expected to answer for their gross negligence. The store owners will pay some token compensation to the bereaved families, an amount way below of even the least or minimum rates for damage/death compensation.
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We are glad to know that San Fernando Mayor Oca Rodriguez has issued an order that will regulate the entry of pedicabs inside the city's main commercial district. This quick response by the mayor is exactly the opposite of officials in Angeles City, including the police, whose attention has been called by local residents to solve the illegal invasion of squatters and sidewalk vendors in principal streets in that city.
The areas invaded by sidewalk vendors, hawkers and squatters are still active and create pedestrian traffic in the poblacion. City hall employees said the said local officials do not profit out of this situation, but some law enforcers do.
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The return of the food program for indigent families in Metro Manila opens the need to launch an urban green revolution campaign. As in the time of the Marcos regime, vegetable raising in vacant lots, in pots, cans and available spaces was the quick solution against malnutrition and hunger. It was a success in its time.
The rich should do their part in sponsoring or undertaking palliative moves like the soup kitchen to feed the most hungry of the urban poor. In the provinces where vacant and idle lots abound, vegetable and root crops raising should be started to help waken people's potentials on their ability to survive.
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While we see Customs officials burning imported fruits, meat and processed food, let us give these to private organizations and charity groups with track records of feeding the poor, rather than incinerate the merchandise. Unless the burning of these smuggled goods was a token gesture by government against smuggling, continued and unabated entry of smuggled merchandise in time for Christmas will go on.
Let us confiscate these contraband and use them to feed the hungry. Only channel their distribution and disposition to the known non-corrupt and only charitable groups to avoid commercial resale of the merchandise.
(October 12, 2004 issue)
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