In April 2022, I prepared several questions for my survey questionnaire about the issues in the community that the local officials in Barangay Hulo, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila think their residents want to address. The survey was conducted on April 1, 2022. Fortunately, two local officials were able to give me their time to answer the survey and know their insights.
"Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community.'' - Anthony J. D'Angelo
Barangay Hulo, being a small community, has residents who really know each other. For them, they are like an extended family. The relationship between the residents and officials are tight. With that being said, residents were able to analyze their community issues that will help the officials plan on resolving those issues. The sense of community is something greater than us.
“The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.” – Mahatma Gandhi
In the society we are living in, the power of humanity could solve the issues in this non-humane world. We can call ourselves human, we are all human, but are we humane?
Table 1.
The figure shows the basic information of Kagawad Mikel and Sec. Pau.
Mr. Michael Angelo “Kag. Mikel” J. Perey is a 49 year old councilor in Barangay Hulo. He has been a council member for 7 years already. Ever since he was born, he has been living in Barangay Hulo. He is a college graduate. Other than being a counselor, he owns a construction and medical supplies business together with his family. In fact, her daughter, Jaimie, also served in the barangay as a Sangguniang Kabataan Chairperson. The Javier-Perey family is well known as good servants of the community.
Ms. Aliza Pauline “Sec. Pau” S. Buluran is a 26 year old young lady who works as a secretary in Barangay Hulo. She has been in that local office position for more than a year already. Her family moved to Hulo when she was 4 year old. Now, they have been living there for 22 years already. Also, her younger sister, Aira, is the 2022 Local Organization Secretary of JCI Greenfields.
Table 2.
The figure shows the photo of Kagawad Mikel and Secretary Pau together, and the logo of JCI Philippines.
FUN FACT!
Kagawad Mikel and Secretary Pau have one thing in common. They are both active member-volunteers of JCI Philippines. Kagawad Mikel has been serving the people since 2012 and Secretary Pau since 2016.
According to JCI Philippines, “JCI Philippines is a national organization of Junior Chamber International (JCI), a global non-profit organization created for enterprising individuals ages 18-40 with over 500,000 members in more than 100 countries. We focus on professional development, economic opportunities, and creative solutions to address problems across all levels of society.”
JCI Philippines’ international tagline is “Developing leaders for a changing world.” Members of the organization are encouraged to assess their capabilities, design solutions, enable innovations, and determine areas of growth.
According to Sec. Pau, JCI Philippines taught them that service to humanity is the best work of life.
Table 3.
The figure shows an overview of Kagawad Mikel’s former and current affiliations.
Here are the issues that the residents probably raised according to Kagawad Mikel:
First, waste collection. There is a daily waste collection in Hulo, but still, some households are complaining about the allotted time of waste collection in their area. In fact, poor waste management and collection contributes to climate change and air pollution which could also be a problem in the community.
Second, livelihood projects. In the midst of the pandemic, PWDs and other indigent constituents have been affected by the lockdown periods and lost their jobs and other sources of income. They are seeking help from the barangay but there are not enough resources and facilities to conduct livelihood projects.
Third and last, lack of material recovery facilities. According to Resource Recovery Group, “the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) uses state-of-the-art systems and equipment to recover recyclables from the yellow-topped bin. Plastic bottles and containers, glass, paper, cardboard, aluminum and steel products are separated and baled at the MRF.”
There are five process features: commingled recyclables, quality control, paper sort and separation, plastics, metal, and glass sorting, and balers.
Table 4.
The figure shows an overview of Secretary Pau’s former and current affiliations.
Here are the issues that the residents probably raised according to Secretary Pau:
First, peace and order. According to her, this is caused by the lack of barangay personnel or Bantay Bayan. Even though there are closed-circuit television (CCTV) and surveillance cameras in Hulo, those are not enough to focus on addressing the issue especially during night and midnight hours. In addition, there are a lot of complaints about loitering and drinking in the middle of the streets. Also, the barangay cannot patrol in the area often because there are not enough patrol vehicles.
Second, littering and pet waste. The residents are not responsible enough in managing their waste before the waste collection schedule in their area. Some do not follow but have the guts to complain about their waste not being collected. Also, pet owners are not responsible in the proper way of defecating their pets and disposal.
Third and last, COVID-19 vaccination rollout. Since the vaccination of ages 5-17 years old started in February 2022, the parents are worried about their child’s safety and they want their child to have their vaccine shots as soon as possible to avoid the risk of getting infected with the virus. The rollout of vaccination in Hulo is slow because the allocation of the vaccines is limited.
Table 5.
The figure shows the summary of issues that the local officials think the residents addressed in BE1 Survey Among Citizens.
Table 6.
The figure shows the summary of community issues based on the results of BE1 Survey Among Citizens and BE2 Survey Through Local Officials.
As I compared the results of the survey answered by the citizens and officials, surprisingly, it turned out that the officials got all the answers correct regarding the issues in the community that the citizens want to address.
PS. Rest assured that I did not tell them the answers of the citizens beforehand.
The major problem of Hulo is peace and order, especially loitering and drinking in the middle of the streets. Followed by poor waste management such littering, pet waste, waste collection and lack of material recovery facility. Third, unemployment and lack of livelihood programs/projects. Lastly, COVID-19 vaccination rollout for ages 5-17.
Indeed, service to humanity is the best work of life. With Kagawad Mikel and Secretary Pau’s long experience in serving the people, they know what the people need even if their eyes are closed. In today’s time, it is quite surprising to see multiple people with the same understanding, especially as the lack of showing interest in their own respective communities arise where some do not even care about those who and what surrounds them. Therefore, thinking in the same line or thinking how the people think pulls the facts and other circumstances into logically finding the best solutions.
References:
DESS Newsletter. (2020, December 9). "Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community.'' - Anthony J. D'Angelo. Dubai English Speaking School. Retrieved April 4, 2022, from https://www.dessc.sch.ae/news/2020-12-09/-without-a-sense-of-caring-there-can-be-no-sense-of-community-anthony-j-d-angelo
JCI Philippines. (n.d.). Developing Leaders for a Changing World. JCI Philippines. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://jciphilippines.com/about-us/
Orner, M. (2014, June 5). 12 Quotes about Humanity. The Borgen Project. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from https://borgenproject.org/twelve-quotes-humanity/
Resource Recovery Group. (n.d.). Materials Recovery Facility. Resource Recovery Group. Retrieved April 3, 2022, from https://www.resourcerecoverygroup.com.au/our-services/facilities/materials-recovery-facility-mrf.aspx
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