Mayors should protect lives, properties and reduce disaster risks, says Cebu town official
By Fayette C. Ri�en
CEBU CITY, August 25 (PIA) -- Local chief executives must prioritize the protection of lives and properties of their constituents by empowering communities to take the lead.
During a recent orientation briefing to members of the Cebu Association of City and Municipal Public Information Officers (CAOCAMPIO) in San Francisco town, Vice Mayor Alfredo Arquillano said the community-based approach has earned their municipality global recognition in good governance.
“Mayors should involve the people in finding solutions to problem and they should be there to support the people,” Arquillano said. “It is communities that build nations.”
Arquillano was a 2011 UN awardee for disaster reduction.
The community-based strategy dubbed as the ‘purok’ system approach was an idea that started in 2004, when Arquillano was on his last year of his first term as municipal mayor. The idea was to organize several households into several puroks where each purok would consist of around 50 households depending on their geographical location, bared Arquillano.
“I first started selling the concept to the residents where they would organize into puroks and initially advocated for clean and green surroundings where each purok was responsible for beautifying its surroundings. There was resistance which I already anticipated because people are always resistant to change so I gave my plan five years to be acceptable to the people,” said Arquillano.
Arquillano said he started with those that were supportive to the concept starting with cleanliness and beautification efforts to promote the town as a tourism destination. “Those that have organized the puroks have transformed their surroundings into a clean and beautiful area which led other people to appreciate the essence of the purok system and eventually organized themselves into puroks,” disclosed the vice mayor.
It took less than five years to organize puroks in the 15 barangays of San Francisco which made other programs easy to implement such as on solid waste management and greening program which are essential components of climate change mitigation and reduce risks of disasters.
The municipal government then went into a partnership with a non-government organization Plan International on disaster risk reduction to capacitate the puroks into strengthening community resilience through disaster preparedness.
In 2010, Plan International nominated the town to the United Nations Sasakawa Award for Disaster Reduction which had four nominees from the country namely Albay, Guinsaogon, Makati City and San Francisco town. Only San Francisco made it to the top six finalists worldwide which later were trimmed down to three. The six finalists were
Vancouver, Argentina, India, Central America, Pakistan and the little municipal island town of San Francisco.
The town later bested the two top finalists Argentina and Vancouver to covet the title of the 2011 UN Sasakawa Award for Disaster Reduction. The award is given to an individual or institution that has taken initiatives in reducing disaster risk in their communities and advocates for disaster risk reduction.
Just this year, the municipality has earned three titles from the Cebu Provincial Government as the Best Model LGU, Green Champion and Grand Champion for the EGWEN Our Cebu Program. EGWEN stands for Expanded Green and Wholesome Environment that Nurtures.
Currently, there are over 120 puroks organized in the town’s 15 barangays. (PIA-Cebu)
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RDC 7 sponsors mass in Cebu for Sec. Robredo, pilot Bahinting
By Amorganda A. Saludar
CEBU CITY August 24 (PIA) --- The Central Visayas Regional Development Council (RDC) 7 offered mass at 12 noon today to pay tribute to the late Secretary Jesse Robredo and his Cebuano pilot Jessup Bahinting.
Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma officiated the mass at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral.
RDC-7 chairman Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has urged all RDC members and congressmen in the region to attend the said mass in honor of Roberdo and Bahinting considered by many as good examples of good governance and humanitarian service, respectively.
Robredo was considered instrumental in implementing good governance policies for guidance among local government unit leaders as well as the implementation of some projects, programs and campaigns geared toward good and effective leadership local chief executives and public officials.
Bahinting on the other hand, was seen as a local hero for saving the life of a Cebu City zoo keeper Ronaldo Aventurado who was bitten by a Philippine Cobra less than two weeks ago. Bahinting, president and chief executive officer of Aviatour Air lent his plane to get the anti-venom vaccine from Camiguin to save Aventurado’s life and was set to be given a Lifesaver Award in the 2013 Cebu City Charter Day celebration.
Last Saturday, Robredo was in Cebu for two speaking engagements before heading home to Naga city in the afternoon of the same day aboard a private Pipper Senecca aircraft manned by owner pilot Bahinting. Also on board were Bahinting’s Nepalese co-pilot Kshitiz Chand and Robredo’s aide Senior Inspector June Paulo Abrasado when the aircraft crashed off in the sea at Barangay Obingay in Masbate City.
Only Abrasado survived the crash. (FCR/AYS/PIA-7, Cebu)