If the people take their paper airplane of wish to be carried by the wind, how about those who are at the end of it? The ones who are seated in power with the responsibility of receiving it, what are their paper airplanes they want to let go?
After hearing about the voices of the residents in barangay Longos from Balagtas, Bulacan, I had the opportunity to talk with some officials in the barangay and hear their own “paper airplanes.”
The respondents that I had the chance to inquire on the issue or problems that need to be addressed in the community are the Barangay Captain and the Sangguniang Kabataan Treasurer. With these two officials I was able to have an overview on the general problems as well as the issues encountered by the youth in the community.
From the perspective of the SK Treasurer the problems that need to be addressed specifically concerning the youth are the following; the lack of financial support in education, the transmission of the Covid-19, the youth’s lack of participation in the community and the stigma on mental health. He said that addressing these issues is necessary for the officials to take appropriate steps to solve these problems.
"The abovementioned youth-related issues are only a few of several problems that civilians of our age encounter/experience on a daily basis. Addressing their prevalence and adverse effects on youth is an imperative step for us to implement pertinent interventions."
The first issue on the lack of financial support in education was also raised by one of the citizens who was surveyed on the last blog post. This showed that this is one of the primary and common issues concerning the youth that must be addressed. Despite the need for support for education especially in this new normal, there haven’t been any projects or programs that will help in aiding the education of the youth. The last program done to address this issue was led by the Sangguniang Kabataan last year, 2021, in the month of December wherein they gave out “Pamaskong Educational Assistance” to students of 15-30 years old only. But even then, not all of the youth in the barangay was able to receive this grant as it was also limited on a “first come first serve” basis in obtaining the form to be eligible to receive the grant. And since then, I haven’t heard any new projects concerning the education of the youth in the community, which is truly a concern as there might be some who wanted to continue their studies but haven’t been able to because they are struggling financially and weren't able to get any assistance from the barangay. With the new normal more demanding in learning because of the equipment needed, the assistance from the barangay in order for the citizens to access education is now needed more than ever. Having access to education is a basic right for us, after all.
On the other hand, in the eyes of the Barangay Captain, one of the problems needed to be addressed is the clogged drainage canal. Like the lack of education assistance, this issue was also raised by one of the residents in the last blog post. According to him, it was a problem that was supposed to be solved already but then Corona Virus came and the budget went to pandemic. Although there is a budget for the fixing of drainage canals, the budget is too small for it. It is a pressing concern as there is no certainty when an additional budget will be allocated for this issue. Time will continue to move and before we know it, the rainy season will come and the community will be affected because of flooding especially on the C. Galvez St. of the barangay where they are the most affected by the clogged drainage canals. Another issue mentioned by our barangay captain is the barangay roads that needed to be fixed. Although there are roads that have already improved such as the street where I live, which is Atienza St., there are still streets that need to be fixed and paid attention to. Like the issue with drainage canals, there is also a little budget for this concern that is why it is hard for this to be addressed properly.
"'Di kaya ng budget natin na maisaayos yung… yung problema natin sa kalsada eh. Napakalaking budget [ang kailangan] kumpara doon sa budget natin na maliit, hindi kaya."
Both of these problems mentioned were also raised by the citizens, this meant that the officials were aware of this concern but weren't able to properly act on it because of the budget constraint. In connection to this struggle to have more budget, the barangay captain also revealed that they are having a hard time to ask the current Mayor for more projects for our community. He said that because we are a small barangay we were not being prioritized as compared to other large barangay here in Balagtas. That is also a major problem because we are being overlooked in terms of projects for the community.
These problems mentioned by the officials in the barangays are not light topics that could be simply put at the back of discussion. The lack of educational assistance is an issue that must be resolved especially with the current state of our education amidst the pandemic. According to Child Hope Philippines (2021) there are close to 4 million of students who were not able to enroll this school year. With the new normal in education more demanding financially, it is important that the barangay, even at the bare minimum, would offer some support for the education of the youth. Then in the issue of drainage canals, the flooding it creates may damage water supply infrastructures and may also cause diseases because of contamination of domestic water sources (World Health Organization, n.d.). Aside from damaging people's property, this issue results in more serious concern for the health of the citizens. That is why it must really be addressed for the sake of the public health. Then, for the safety and comfort of the citizens, the fixing of roads is a must. Our barangay is already small, the unpaved and rocky paths add more inconveniences and problems when going to each street.
In a nutshell, these issues exist because the budget the barangay has, is not enough. They may hold positions within the community but they can't fully proceed to their plans as they wait for the grace of the people seated in higher positions. However, as a citizen of this community, I do hope that they also find a way to find alternatives to address this issue, in order for our barangay to take one step forward facing these problems.
They may be the ones holding a position but still their own paper airplanes aren't much different to the ordinary citizens of the community. As they are also residents here, they also experience the problems in our barangay. In the end, what makes a difference is that, they have the power they must exercise to acknowledge and create a plan to address these issues in the community.
References
Drainage. World Health Organization. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/hygiene/settings/hvchap5.pdf?ua=1
Education issues in the Philippines: The ongoing struggle. ChildHope Philippines. (2021, September 1). Retrieved from https://childhope.org.ph/education-issues-in-the-philippines/
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