By Dominic I. Sanchez
ZAMBOANGA CITY -
Zamboanga was once known to be one of the cleanest cities in the country, a far
cry from the reality today.
Mayor Maria Isabelle
Climaco-Salazar herself acceded to this circumstance. “Bien masusio gayod el
ciudad (the city is very dirty),” she exclaimed during one of her regular media
engagements.
Residents in the barangays have
constantly complained of the trash, scattered even in the city’s major thoroughfares,
being both an eyesore and a health hazard.
“Bien yede, bien mabuling el
Zamboanga! (Zamboanga is filthy; it stinks!),” said one concerned citizen.
“Mucho gayod basura na mga
paradahan de jeep, y donde-donde, (there’s plenty of trash even in jeepney
parking areas and other public places),” the mayor pointed out.
However, apathy, lack of concern
and irresponsibility among residents themselves contribute to the volume of
garbage accumulating in the streets. “Bien bueno gad sila reklama, sila man tambien
mismo ta buta maga susio y ta iskupi donde-donde (They are good in complaining
when it is they themselves who spit on the streets and throw garbage
everywhere),” said another concerned citizen.
Meanwhile, Mayor Climaco-Salazar
emphasized that “bad equipment,” being the reason of those in-charge of garbage
collection, “is not an excuse.”
In a press conference held Monday
(June 16), she announced that the General Services Office (GSO) and the Office
of the City Environment and Natural Resources (OCENR) have already met with
barangay officials to discuss possible solutions to the garbage problem. “We
already instructed the GSO and the OCENR to come up with a thorough plan to
immediately address garbage and make the city clean again,” said Mayor
Climaco-Salazar.
The presence of garbage mixed with
accumulated rain or floodwater is one of the causes of the spread of the
dengue-carrying mosquitoes, shared City Health Officer Dr. Rodelin Agbulos.
The
City Health Office is trying to aggressively address sanitation in communities,
and especially at the evacuation centers.
The mayor also appealed to the
ordinary residents to be more responsible in disposing of their trash. “We only
have one Zamboanga, one home.
Please learn to treat the city as an extension of
your very homes,” she pleaded.
