In March 2022, I conducted a survey on Mandaluyong City regarding the issues in the community that the residents want to address. Mandaluyong City is known as the “Tiger City of the Philippines” wherein its name came from the rolling terrain and tall cogon grasses that sway in the wind or “daluyong” in the vernacular, and “Shopping Mall Capital of the Philippines” because the city is surrounded by infrastructures owned and managed by the most successful business corporations in the country.
Hulo is one of the barangays in the city of Mandaluyong in Metro Manila. The population of Hulo is 31,335 as determined by the 2020 Census, which represents 7.36% of the total population of Mandaluyong City.
My cousin, Aira, and her family have been living in Hulo for 22 years already. Their family has seen how Hulo slowly developed. From time to time, I go on a short vacation and stay at their house. By doing so, it made me aware of the social issues that exist in their small community.
Table 1.
The table above shows the summary of the survey.
I prepared several questions for my survey questionnaire about the issues in the community that the residents want to address. The survey was conducted on March 24-27, 2022. Thankfully, I was able to ask 10 residents residing in Hulo. As you read this blog, you can check out the final interpretation of data below. Here are the claims that I have based on the result of the survey:
Table 2.
The table above shows the issues that the residents want to address.
Alcohol consumption takes a heavy toll on the community.
“Maingay kahit hanggang madaling araw paminsan minsan at nakakaabala.” Alyssa said.
Four respondents want to address the issue of alcohol consumption of the residents in Hulo. Most of the time, the drinking sessions of the drinkers in the middle of the streets take time up until midnight and block the streets. This makes other residents uncomfortable and irritable. At the same time, there are adults who came from work that are trying to get a good sleep that cannot rest peacefully due to disturbing sounds that the drinkers make. Also, this causes fights between the residents and the drinkers.
There is not enough awareness about littering in the community.
“Napansin ko na hindi maayos ang pagtatapon ng basura ng mga nakatira sa barangay namin. Halos lahat ng parte ng barangay eh may makikita ka na kahit na maliit na kalat sa kung saan. Iresponsable yung iba.” Paul said.
Three respondents want to address the issue of littering and proper segregation in Hulo. There are a lot of residents who throw their trash everywhere regardless of their age, be it a kid or not. Proper segregation is not being practiced. When you look around the barangay, you can see that there are irresponsible people who do not take action to reduce littering in their community.
The unemployment rate of the community is high.
“I am one of the unemployed citizens. It's hard to find a job because of my age.” Eliza said.
Two respondents want to address the issue of unemployment and one respondent on loitering, which I think, based on their answers, is related. There are a lot of residents who loiter around because they have no jobs, loitering now became a part of their life. In addition, there are not enough livelihood programs that will help unemployed people to improve their skills and find jobs that suit them. In the barangay, there are persons with disabilities, returning overseas Filipino workers who lost their jobs because of the pandemic and former detainees who need the program to make their ends meet.
Table 3.
The table above shows how long the respondents have been living in Hulo.
The respondents of the survey I conducted have been living in Hulo for an average of 17 years, which makes it easy for them to identify the issues that are needed to be addressed in their community. The findings in this survey suggests that the authorities and officials should patrol more often and organize livelihood programs and environmental awareness.
“[Yung pag inom] nagiging sanhi minsan ng away, maingay [at] inaabot ng madaling-araw, at minsan nakakaabala at nakakailang sa [mga] dumadaan at dadaan.” Sison said.
According to the Department of Health, “On alcohol use, consumption was high, with 4 in 10 Filipinos (40.1% percent.) Three adult Filipinos (33.1 percent) reported drinking six or more glasses in a single drinking occasion. Men reported higher rates of heavy drinking occasions at 43.2 percent compared to women at 22.9 percent.”
Adults should be responsible drinkers. More residents are becoming sensitive about littering, given the fact that we are in a pandemic, makes it make sense. Not just that, even before, drinking in the middle of the streets is being normalized. It is now embedded in the culture of the Philippines. Beer and other alcoholic beverages became the go-to-drink of Filipinos, mostly because of its cheap price. A single bottle costs around 40 pesos.
The result also shows that the authorities are not that strict in making the residents who violated the rules pay for their violation, that is why they just continue on repeating what they do and do not learn from their mistakes because they think the authorities will let it pass every time they do those things.
“In order to more fully understand this reality, we must take into account other dimensions of a broader reality.” - John Archibold Wheeler.
This may sound like science fiction, but as someone who tried living in Hulo, I can guarantee that these issues really exist but not everyone is aware of it. I believe that the barangay and municipal officials should look into these things and resolve them because they have been here for a long time. The other dimension of Hulo is where the deeper possibilities come into play.
References:
Gonzales, C. (2021, August 17). Pandemic habits? DOH survey shows 40% of Filipinos drink alcohol, 15% smoke tobacco. Inquirer.net. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1474638/doh-survey-40-of-filipino-adults-drink-alcohol-15-smoke-tobacco
Philippines Cities. (n.d.). Mandaluyong City History | Tourist Spots, Language and Festivals | Philippines Cities. Philippine Cities. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from https://philippinescities.com/mandaluyong-city/
Yañez, G. (n.d.). Guide to the Philippines Drinking Culture: Inuman & Pulutan Favorites. Guide to the Philippines. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from https://guidetothephilippines.ph/articles/history-culture/philippines-drinking-culture-guide
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