A municipal growth can be significantly traced to its barangays' development. It has a great impact on the welfare of the city as a whole. Barangays were established to act as the main planner and implementor of progressive programs in a community.
Through Blog #1, it is can be obviously seen that the views of its citizens differ from the public officials. On a survey given to the Sangguniang Kabataan of Barangay Muzon, only two have successfully allotted time to fill out the online survey form.
I have successfully managed to survey the two officials of Sangguniang Kabataan of Barangay Muzon. Honorable Judy May Ferrer is an SK Councilor and currently the head of the SK's Education Committee. While Mx. Jepoy Tomas is an appointed Barangay Record Keeper or also known as BRK.
The survey form contains the same questions I used in gathering data for Blog #1. According to the results, the problems that the two SK officials think are present inside our Barangay are No Access to Waterlines, Illegal drugs, Teenage Pregnancy, Becoming Overpopulated, Traffic Jam, and Inadequate Medical Services. All problems were mutually chosen by the two SK officials except for the Inadequate Medical Services.
Comparisons of the result from the citizens and the officials
According to Blog #1, the main problem that the citizens addressed is Teenage Pregnancy. It got 8 out of 10 votes from the respondents. Only four of the six problems according to the officials are present in the top six problems based on the citizens' responses.
The two SK officials have addressed different problems and explanations about the issues that they want to resolve immediately.
According to SK Councilor Judy May Ferrer, the problem that she wants to resolve immediately is access to a waterline. Though most of the households here in Barangay Muzon have an access to waterlines, many are still out of its functionality.
No Access to Waterlines mainly because water is one of the most important thing to live. Without water, it would be hard and you cannot do a lot of things without it. - SK Councilor Judy May Ferrer
For example, in the Feliciano Subdivision of Barangay Muzon, only a few have faucets that deliver water from the water district. To ease this problem, the city officials have installed three water stations or the "Tawid Uhaw" inside Feliciano Subdivision. This initiative is a project stationed in our subdivision to suffice the crisis in water by not being able to own access to waterlines. People here are benefitting from it for years.
On the other hand, the SK Barangay Record Keeper pointed out the severe traffic jam in Barangay Muzon.
Isa sa nais kong bigyan ng solusyon ay yung traffic sa Muzon, di naman siguro maitatanggi na pag napasok na sa boundary ng Brgy ay paniguradong traffic na at nagkakaroon pa ng away kung minsan dahil dito. - SK BRK Jepoy Tomas
The traffic jam dilemma can be easily seen at the Barangay's main crossroads. There are no traffic lights at the crossroads despite the huge number of vehicles passing through it. There are only traffic enforcers who administer the flow of the traffic. Currently, there is no road construction occurring that may hinder the flow of vehicles at the crossroads. The main reason could be rooted in the massive number of vehicles passing through the crossroads every day.
Comparison of the results from the citizens and the officials
Meanwhile, there is only one problem that aligned with the citizens' response from the SK officials: no access to waterlines. The issue of the water crisis is among the top three citizens' responses.
CONCLUSION
In the eyes of public officials and citizens, a fine line is inevitable. Being a citizen gives us the privilege to see what is going on around us. We can freely express and address it to contribute to the growth of our community. While being a public official requires a huge commitment to the community and citizens' welfare.
Though they have different views and ways to justify their responses, these surveys still show problems that need to be resolved in Barangay Muzon.
Based on water.org, there are more than 3 million Filipinos who rely on unsafe water sources. While 7 million are incapable to access improved sanitation. Seasons will always change, but water as the basic needs of people will not. Problems start as small. So, we could prevent problems from turning bigger while it is smaller.
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