Mayor Dismayed About Garbage, Mayor Wrong!
Our garbage was not collected for one week. This is because of Peter Rey’s uber-simplistic directive that unsegregated garbage will not be collected. And I suppose only an uber-simplistic mind would believe that that was enough to get the people here to follow his orders. Wrong!
The people just kept piling up the trash to where they believe are the correct areas for dumping their garbage (mind you, these are out in the streets, out in the open, attracting flies and vermin). The way it’s done here is, a homeowner or two will decide which area is best to throw the garbage, and the other mindless neighbors follow suit and dump it in the same area.
For example, there’s a slab of concrete in front of an unoccupied house across from mine so the folks in my neighborhood decided that that would be their garbage dump. Collection is done on Tuesdays and Fridays, so the folks here throw their trash in yellow SM plastic bags the night before (am I the only one who actually buys trash bags in the whole of St Joseph Village barangay?). But a yellow and white pick-up — let me try and get a photo of his car plate, not that he’s doing anything illegal — will come in the dead of night, open up these bags and take whatever he feels he can sell. This man does not close the bags properly anymore, not that they’re very large.
My staff and I segregate our garbage. We rinse bottles and cans and then sell them to the recyclers. The ‘biodegradables’ are the only ones we throw away. We use double garbage bags to make sure that nothing will fall onto the streets of Baguio. But I cannot say the same for my squatter neighbors in this posh neighborhood of mine. So my segregated trash was not collected right along with those of my jologs neighbors, and that simply was not fair.
There are hundreds of people who have built shanties across the Polo Field at Navy Base. In fact, some unscrupulous individuals have built shanties within Navy Base (someone tried to sell me an untitled shack once upon a time insisting that it was good for transients or boarders)
There are caretakers of vacation houses owned by Manila residents that use these beautiful houses as eateries for taxi drivers and the students at SLU Boys High, and let out rooms to tourists and pocket the money.
Now headlines cry out: “Feeble response to waste segregation dismays exec”
I suppose the mayor does not really know his constituency:
- Baguio is composed of the most unsanitary, uncaring people nowadays. Those who have been led to believe that the poorer they are, the more they should be allowed to abuse the environment. These are people who may keep the inside of their houses clean at the expense of their surroundings.
- Baguio is composed of student who are forever eating the most unhealthy snack foods and throw all the wrappers about. And when the wind blows or the rain falls, these enter my property.
- Baguio folk are too stingy to buy trash bags
- Baguio folk overload those free shopping bags with trash so that the contents will spill out
- Baguio folk do not understand those multicolored, unattractive metal cans the city has put in a few tourist spots for segregated garbage.
- Baguio people just don’t care
- Baguio people are making a bit of money off the diploma mills and are not sophisticated enough to make money off the tourists
- Baguio folk like everything cheap and free
- Baguio folk are selfish
- Baguio people are the most ill-mannered people on earth.
So what Peter Rey did was give the order, freak out that it was not followed, then is now making the City Environment and Parks Management Office go around educating the people in each barangay.
Call me stupid, but shouldn’t the latter have been done friggin BEFORE the directive was handed down?
I am more dismayed at Peter Rey than he is by the failure of his “jump start program.”
We had a lot of tourists this week and they had a first hand view of how stupid this city is getting, led by ineffectual leaders.
- Baguio should should have garbage dumps AWAY from tourist eyes.
- These should be covered and clean and maintained by our gazillion barangays, instead of the tanods behaving like fratmen, drinking gin and watching TV at the barangay halls
- If possible, like Manila, the truck should pass by the houses and the households should hand their garbage to the collectors (problem is, the squatters up in the mountains will have to walk to the road, and they do not like that), just to make sure. Because, garbage collection 2x a week does not a clean city make. Too bad most of the constituents are not required to pay taxes for garbage collection purposes by the squatter-coddling politicians.
- The residents should be given incentives and punishments. The non-collection of garbage this week only served to punish Baguio.
I have heard many a resident resentful of the presence of tourists, thinking they are taking business away from them, or begrudging them the enjoyment of what used to be my virtual heaven on earth. I say to these people, these guys are not the ones dirtying up Baguio — YOU ARE!
IT IS THE RESIDENTS HERE TRASHING BAGUIO ALL YEAR ROUND FOR FREE!
Pardon me, Lisa is uber-angry today.
Hello Lisa, lots of things to get angry about Baguio. Only thing I can complain about is actual implementation of hundred of ordinances they pass everyday. They just cant seem to keep up.
Its amazing how the city will become a mess because they didn’t collect the garbage for a week. Sila ang siga
I can see your from navy base, hello neighboor!!! I live by morning glory street. The avocado colored house.
You’re invited for coffee! Hello neighbor. Nice work on your site. I visit it when I get nostalgic about old Baguio.
lisa,
you are mad getting real mad! can’t anyone bring these op-eds of yours to Baguio Sun-Star newspaper? nobody seems to care about your grumblings here. maybe, connie can help you with it. basura lang hindi maayos. is that right…Baguio now has a recycling system with all the freebie squatters not caring or lifting a foot. Uh oh…smoky mountain coming soon to town!
Well, at least here’s one woman with more balls than all the men in Baguio combined. It’s the apathy that angers me. I don’t think Filipinos are so ignorant that they cannot see what’s going on? What is it, the systematic destruction of Baguio do that only the diploma mills will be left standing?
Oh well, so much for the restraint I have been exercising these past months. And if very few are reading these articles, at least I did my part by putting my views on the record for the whole world to see — eventually.
Lisa,
I found one who’s got balls Ariston “Aris Remas.
Check out his multiply site.
http://baguionews.multiply.com/
He featured Baguio’s trash along Session Road too! Woohoo! Commented his site to check your blog. Laters.
Thanks Joe, for the link. However, I am always bothered when photos portraying ugly Baguio are published. No realist am I, I suppose.
Ha-ha-ha again!
100 days ago, the man at the helm said: “Simple lang ang aking gusto…” (Eh, bakit dugyot na dugyot pa rin ang Baguio?)
To tell you, I had a most embarrassing day last Oct 5 when Heritage Promotions visitors — a textile artist and a photographer — came all the way from the US to see for themselves what we’ve featured in our magazines.
That stormy day, Baguio streets were lined with tons of garbage. I cringed and felt so guilty promoting this city to the world.
Some two months back, I had an item about the Baguio Visitors and Convention Bureau’s “Project Oscar” (inspired by Oscar The Grouch of Sesame Street) which was rejected by the City Engineer’s Office. [I will find the time to retrieve that piece later].
But it’s not that simple dude, as we see. It takes at least 21 days or so for a habit to form, and that is on the basis of a determined effort per individual.
Now we’re talking about Baguio society which may take a little harder to teach. As I’ve said in that forum of the Baguio Web International Group — It’s not going to happen overnight.
Let me repeat: It’s not that simple, dude.
Hi Chi! I, too, had guests. The sweetest public officials from Guimaras, who came by invitation of our local government. They excitedly came bearing gifts, seedlings of their exportable mangoes, a lot of their beautiful products like fruit piaya, cashew butter, etc.
Arrived at 11pm, were stuck into some squalid government housing, and called me at midnight wanting to flee. They spent the next day with me remarking how Baguio had changed, how dirty it was, how bad things look.
As Go Baguio! webmaster, and innkeeper, I feel I am lying every time I ’sell’ Baguio as my virtual heaven on earth these days.
In the beginning, I refrained from writing any op-eds but things are so bad these days!
Why do I get this feeling that the destruction of Baguio’s tourism is intentional? So that our economy will be left only with the diploma mills?
Hi Lisa.
I’m from Teacher’s Camp (hello, neighbor… sort of). To be honest (if all six years of a UP degree is worth it), our garbage problem is really a matter of poor implementation, a lack of foresight, and downright incompetence by the City Government. Yes, I understand the nobility of the project, but I don’t understand the pragmatics of the project. You just can’t do zero waste management overnight. The City Government didn’t even make a single waste-recycling facility or even invest in a dumpster for every barangay in the City. What kind of a mind found in the other side of a black hole could expect that only discipline will save us at this point?
Here’s my idea: rather than pass some silly ordinance on paltry road sign rehabilitation or commemorations of stuff, you can buy a dumpster for each of the 128 barangays of the City. Then, in order to eliminate our problem with gangs, gang members should be made to segregate trash from the dumpsters (that’s as ghetto as you’re going to get) and mow grass at Melvin Jones. Two birds with one stone.
BTW: Mind if I link you up?
Does Peter Rey ALWAYS come up with the wrong approach? Can’t he see, until one impose harsh punishment, they won’t listen. Fine them 5,000 pesos a day; especially those non-tax payers, who sell ukay-ukays, who sell burgers, friens, odocs, tokneneng na isang linggong nirerecycle yung mantika.
Bomb the city nalang.
Baguio folk? Estimatedly, 10% of baguio would be Baguio folk. Like 70% of students in Universities aren’t even residents of Baguio.
Welcome Marocharim!
I agree with the dumpsters. I agree with community service. I must insist that ALL houses and ALL residents be made to pay for garbage collection, and whoever raises a hue and cry out of stinginess should be run out of town.
Of course you may link up this blog! Will link you up here,too.
Katrina dearest, the world makes no distinction between those who were born in Baguio, those who have migrated and those who are here to study. And the latter, especially, stay behind and become permanent residents. In fact, it is those who have lived in Baguio all their lives who seek their fortunes elsewhere. For the provincial lowlanders, they seek their fortunes in Baguio.
Regulate the schools, and the auxiliary services (food, school supplies, etc) and you regulate the population of Baguio. But why would the mayor want to do that?
Hi Lisa,
The mayor’s just posted a video on his multiply site appealing for waste segregation. The video is cute (I know the little boy and I adore him! I know who made the video and I salute his intellect!). The message is also cute, but cute is NOT GOOD ENOUGH, if you ask me!
We too are greeted by the sight of uncollected garbage in our neighborhood everyday now. I observed how the barangay collectors pick up the garbage. Their method is to squeeze the bags — yes, they squeeze the bags. If there’s something in the bags that doesn’t feel like whatever it is they’re looking for, THEY LEAVE IT!!! In our compound we’ve been segregating carefully so we know what was in the bags they left behind.
In a post of yours a few months back you suggested that we make use of the mayor’s blog to make ourselves heard. I took the cynic route and said he doesn’t even handle it himself but now I’m with you. I think we should try and get a message across to him through any available avenue. His methods are too simplistic!!! Something needs to be done about the garbage for the transition period between our no segregation days and the new system, until everybody learns and adjusts and complies!
Please post some of the thoughts you’ve shared with us here, on the mayor’s blog! I will do the same!
Here, take a look:
http://peterreybautista.multiply.com/video/item/11/Baguio_needs_your_help?replies_read=10
Hello Padma, I guess I’ll have to post at multiply, too! Either comments have been disabled at Blogger or mine have been disapproved. Here I go …
Lisa:
Since the Mayor seems to be using Multiply (tinatamad akong mag-register), would it be prudent if we all wrote the Mayor a letter concerning this matter? The way I see it, the Mayor needs to learn again an elementary canon of public administration: you can’t implement a project without a structure that defines the project.
Besides, if the government can send barangay officials to chartered plane trips to Davao and SK officials to chartered tourist bus trips to Subic (to be honest, I was one of them: we got fed with all-you-can-eat buffets and stayed in classy rooms at Subic International), wouldn’t the money be better off used to make at least one recycling facility where the Irisan landfill used to be? It’s a matter of general appropriations.
I’d volunteer to write the letter. The last thing I would do is to have the Mayor establish his “connection” with me (I’m the one guy in our precinct who voted for Felipe Ramos, anyway) through Multiply.
Hi, so sorry to stray away from your most important topic here. Just wanted to ask you guys a query on Baguio’s Radio Stations. Seeing this is the most active topic in this blog site with probably some of the most knowledgeable and concerned citizens of the city. I figured this would be my best option.
Do you guys know of any Baguio based Radio Station(s) (AM or FM) which offers LIVE online radio broadcast over the net?
A few or more months ago I came across a Baguio based FM radio station online. I stop listening for a while, then I tried again recently but I’ve lost my link and I couldn’t find the station site again. It vanished, hence my query here.
Tried searching through the most popular Baguio websites, search engines and radio online sites with no success. Can’t find a single “Baguio-based” Radio Station with online services, AM or FM.
Would really appreciate any suggestion, comments or replies.
Many thanks in advance,
Guy
Go, Marocharim! All those who posted on Multiply before Padma’s comments and mine were such rah-rah boys! I even posted my comment using the wrong log-in name. Hassle to comment on Multiply blogs. Maybe that’s why he answers there instead of Blogger (where none of my comments have been approved). I was thinking of an online petition for the Burnham palengke but it’ll not have as much an effect as when it is done on the streets of Baguio via rallies, with placards, the works!
But knowing Baguio folk, no one will march against the administration and the politicians know this. Too provincial here, too many personal relationships involved.
——-
Welcome Guy, and I hope someone reads your request for this info. I know of no Baguio station with online services, but who knows, someone reading your comment just might!
I’m still as confused as ever with this segregation of garbage, but trying my damn best. Biodegs, recyks, resids, and when I’ve done these, were do I leave them? I can’t be waking up daily at 4am just to wait twice for the garbage truck to pick the trash. I wish the mayor well but he seems to have disappeared with this segregation brouhaha. Maybe after things have cooled down a bit, we’ll see him back on tv being interviewed.
the no-segregation-no-collection bruhaha have been used and abused by garbage collectors as reason for not collecting garbage at all. we have been segregating our trash but no truck ever comes anymore. when we complained about this at the city hall, their answer was we were not segregating. what is this????
Hi Resty,
Well, for the plan to work, we should be given a schedule for collection and wait for the trucks so our garbage can be judged “worthy” of collection by them. Because dumping them in common areas will make yours mingle with others, and …
Hi Von,
… so that they cannot allege that we are not segregating.
TO ALL,
Don’t you guys see that this is A DELIBERATE MOVE ON THEIR PART TO RUIN TOURISM AND MAKE THE BAGUIO ECONOMY RELY ON THE SCHOOLS?
Dig deeper! Look at the implementation, look at the timing, look at the pronouncements! It’s systematic
hi lisa…. nice site… mukhang mapapadalas ang visit ko sa site mo….yung blog n baguio needs our help.. it really is nice… but… implementing an ordinace without even giving the residents an insight on when it will be started… syempre maraming mabibigla…then the mayor blames us all that we are not doing our part… then there are these collectors who don;t do their jobs right…. also …. we the resident’s of baguio…(walang disiplina) your blog’s true… Baguio folks don’t care…..yes we have the right to blame others.. but let us check ourselves first…..
To Lisa,
Aren’t you too snobbish? Don’t generalize about poor people. You might be richer than most of your neighbors, but this doesn’t give you the right to blame other people’s station in life for poor garbage segregation. A lot of rich people are SLOBS too. Their re-using of sm plascti bags is better than buying trash bags. That’s called recycling, you know?
cha of baguio
Hi Tim,
I’m glad you agree with the issues we raise here — ang know you’re comments and insights are always welcome.
And welcome Cha,
Hahaha, there’s nothing snobbish about me — ask around! It’s just that segregation will not be achieved by using SM plastic bags filled to the brim, and having trash spill out into the streets!
Peter Rey wants garbage segregation? Then he should maybe make cheap, large, sturdy, color-coded garbage bags available to his constituents, or even for free! (I read a comment by Chi in another post about the city council legislating unto themselves P20M for cars — how many trash bags will that buy?)
I allow no one to make excuses for their behavior — rich or poor. We should all behave, we should all realize there are costs to living, and not take liberties with our environment.
Sorry, one should not use SM plastic bags in the name of recycling. You can use it to line waste baskets but not for major trash, too easy for the vermin to open up and feast on.
And I may be better off because I work like a dog! Any personal money I have, I earned. I worked since 16. I was given no capital my businesses. I am able to get store credits to start businesses because my name is clean. I follow rules. I understand that having a car means being able to afford a garage. I take risks with businesses that happen to pay off because I am creative, and none of them have caused Baguio any harm, and have in fact enhanced Baguio. I also did not breed like everyone else and expect Baguio City to pay for my children’s education.
So I will not have being better off be taken against me. Because I am tired of people judging me by my surname most of the time. Just for the record.
I’m not angry, ha. I just figured it would be a good opportunity to set the record straight, because you brought up a personal matter in your comment.
yung mga tao dito sa ambiong road mga pasaway…
tuwing araw ng tapunan ng basura yung mga di
nakokolekta sinusunog nila… buwisit…
at tuwing hapon maraming nagsusunog ng basura dahil
di daw kinokolekta… buwisit talaga sila…
ang usok na dito sa ambiong road…
sa mga nagbabalak na magboarding house dito….
huwag na lang…
kasi malulunod ka sa usok araw araw tuwing hapon…
yung mga daanan pa andaming nakagarahe… dun pa mismo sa no parking site…
yung may nakalagay na no parking city ordinance…
mayor gising …
pag pupunta na sa trabaho…
buong rimando road ang usok…san na yung pangako nila nung eleksyon?
nagkakasakit na ang mga tao….
di ka makakahinga dito sa baguio…buwisit talaga…
How can you expect Mr Bautista to be able to really do something about garbage when he can’t even do something about the ugly and unsanitary carinderia right in front of his University? And also, the inumans, karaokeans along assumption road(the one beside AMDC)?
Buti pa sa baranggay namin, kahitpapaano masmaraming matino. We only bring our garbage out when it’s collection time. The problem are the bagong saltas in our baranggay. They don’t properly dispose of their garbages. Wala silang pakialam kung kalkalin ng aso. Mga di naman taga-dito.
IMO, the biggest problem of garbage collection id at CBD. Those goddamn ‘businessmen’,en9particularly those who sell pirated CDs and factory rejects, those who sell bangus). I think the City gov should REALLY penalize establishments without proper garbage disposal. Usually kasi, iniiwan nalang sa sidewalks, nakatunganga pa. Karamihan ng establishments dito, especially the ‘newer ones’ walang pakialam sa garbage disposal nila.
Why can’t these establishments be like Jolibee no? especially Jolibee Assumption and Session(Jolibee Magsaysay is a shit..hehe… they don’t teach their employees to dispose of garbage properly), unlike it’s neighboring establishments they seem to have a good one and properly implemented one. And Jolibee has made the move to greatly reduce their use of styro and plastic cups.
And also, those scavengers should be arrested. Darn, sila yung nagkakalat ng mga basura eh.
La problema con nuestro cabeza de ciudad, he complains MORE than us. But hardly do anything. We have lots of ordinances, he just doesn’t implement it. Why don’t he let schools(his school in particular) strictly abide by the waste segregation law? If a school like girls’ high can implement it, why can’t he? The tradition of waste segregation in girls high has a longer history than the ordinance.
La problema con nosotros, we easily what Peds or any politicians say no matter how shallow and fake they appear. I guess we get the government we deserve no?
Hi Janice,
Yes, we get the government we deserve. We will not be abused if more of us do not allow ourselves to be abused.
We must re-engage as citizens of the city in helping to make this the haven we want for our families — but not just for ourselves, for everyone living here.
And to make sure that those who do not have good motives, the discipline and the integrity to become the caretakers of this place, if they cannot be convinced to behave, be asked to take their trash elsewhere.
hi. im from baguio, studying abroad right now. i’ve heard about the 450M comprehensive solid waste management program of the city. honestly, i doubt they can pull it off. Do they really know what they’re doing? They don’t have waste reduction targets, more so, a clear cut management plan. Hell, they can’t even manage a decent and focused education campaign on waste segregation! Last i heard, the mayor’s “think-tanks” are breaking their heads over the design of public waste receptacles.. talk about off-the-wall policy debates. if this is the apex of technical solutions they can offer, we are in deeper sh*t than ever. Can someone please tell the mayor & his gangmates to UNDERSTAND the issues of our waste disposal stream first before further committing resources for “vague” solutions?
Hay naku Jake,
I am afraid that the mayor and his ‘think tanks’ are motivated by … and merely paying lip service to … wanting a budget allocation for …
You’re right about the inability of the Mayor-’educator’ and his boys to manage or even have ‘a decent and focused education campaign on waste segregation!’
We citizens must step up if they cannot handle the job. Should you have any experience or expertise (because I’m afraid they don’t) in this area, please let us know so we can maybe offer to help them.
Hi Lisa, so we got another garbage problem in our hands, garbage being uncollected for some days now because the city does not have a place to dump it.
Well Resty,
I guess that’s the price of some people’s vision for the city’s “development” and “progress.” Since the city wants the educational center drama, we have to take the bad effects of overpopulation with the income some of us generate from it.
Sorry to be kinda cynical today, but we have seen the bad effects of this on the environment. Maybe the transient students should be taxed for city services by the schools during enrollment and the money remitted to city hall.
Maybe Baguio should purchase or title unto itself some land instead of giving it away and using it as a dump site. Maybe, instead of planning to build flyovers, it should consider investing in an effective waste management program. Maybe instead of playing golf and traveling some people should do a real lakbay-aral and see how other cities are solving their waste problems.
Hah, after a week, garbage was finally picked up in T. Alonzo St. Can breathe easier now.
Resty, A WHOLE WEEK?! Fire your barangay chairman!
uhmmmm
not all our garbage can be in our houses all the time until the garbage collectors will get it from our houses.just a comment,or an opinion why cant we not have a organized garbage collection taht if ever we did not segregate our garbages it will not be collected.our place is now not pleasing in our nose…there are alot of children in our place that their health is in danger,they might have a sickness that the city hall will problem it…so why cant we start it within our homes???we cant make our homes clean if our selves we cant clean it??so please collect our garbages here..would you mind the health of the children of ours here??do you want that your people in baguio will get sick because of your policy not to get our garbages specially in the maket wheremost of our foods came there??
cant you not realize??what will the effect of garbage not collected to the people around it??
Linked your site here; http://artibaldo.multiply.com/photos/album/70, Cheers!