For the continuation of my study in Barangay Bulihan, I interviewed two barangay officials, Kagawad Constantino Ilag and Kagawad Hermie Tumalet to find out the pressing issues within the community. This study also aims to compare if the barangay official sees the same problems as the citizens.
The barangay officials gave their consent to participate in the interview. The method I used for the interview is semi-structured, following the same guide questions in my previous study. Lastly, I chose thematic analysis to find recurring themes on the answers of the participants.
Here is the list of questions I prepared for the interview.
How many years have you been living in Bulihan?
llang taon na po kayong nakatira sa Bulihan?
What did you like about living here?
Ano-ano po ang nagustuhan niyo sa pagtira dito?
What is/are the problem/s you notice here in the community?
Ano-ano naman po ang mga problema na napapansin niyo sa komunidad?
What do you think is the root of this/these problem/s?
Ano po ang pinag-ugatan o pinagmulan ng problemang ito?
How does it affect you as a resident of Bulihan?
Ano po ang apekto nito sa inyo bilang nakatira sa Bulihan?
As a barangay official, how would you address this problem?
Bilang barangay offical, ano po sa tingin niyo ang mga dapat niyong gawin para
matugunan ang problemang ito?
Why is it important for local government to help the community and its constituents?
Bakit po mahalaga ang pagtulong ng lokal na pamahalaan sa komunidad at sa
kinasasakupan nito?
Participants’ Profile
Data Analysis
Table 1: Perception of the Barangay Bulihan citizens to their community
This refers to how the officials of Barangay Bulihan observed and described their community.
Theme 1: Peaceful community
Barangay Bulihan is described as a peaceful place to live in because of its environmental aspects. It is also a violence free community.
Sub-theme 1: Environmental Aspects
The barangay is still covered with trees, despite the construction of roads and subdivisions. As described by Kagawad Constantino who has lived in Manila, it seems ‘healthier’ to live in a community that is rich in trees.
“Napansin ko sa amin sa Makati, hindi masyadong mapuno, makonkreto siya kaya talagang kakaiba dito, parang mas masaya at healthy tumira.”
(Kagawad Constantino Ilag)
Sub-theme 2: Violence Free Community
The youth living in barangay are more interested in sports rather than forming or joining gangs or fraternities that promote violence. The absence of these groups adds peace to the community.
“Mas tahimik dito kumpara sa ibang barangay. Dito kasi walang mga gang o fraternity…Kaya mas peaceful talaga.”
(Kagawad Hermie Tumale)
Table 2: Community problems in Barangay Bulihan
This refers to the problems that Barangay Bulihan officials notice in their community.
Theme 1: Lack of Discipline
The main problem of Barangay Bulihan is the lack of discipline of its citizens, particularly on maintaining cleanliness in the environment. Moreover, problems also arise whenever there are citizens who show aggression due to the influence of alcohol.
Subtheme 1: Alcohol aggression
According to Kagawad Ilag, who is under the Peace and Order Committee, alcohol is the root of aggression within the citizens. “Drinking alcohol is part of the Philippine culture and is common in birthdays, fiestas and other celebrations and even where there is no occasion, many Filipinos still hang out together,” stated in the study of Salas and Hinlo (2019) about alcohol consumption and crimes. They also found that alcohol is a factor in crimes like murder and robbery.
Alcohol can reduce our ability to think straight and narrow our attention (drinkaware.co.uk). That is the reason a drunk person will get provoked because of their inability to think about the consequences before starting a fight.
“Tungkol naman sa katahimikan…ngayon nagkaroon ng pandemic, ipinagbabawal ang pag-inom. Hindi rin nakakasunod…Sa inuman, madalas nagmumula ang gulo. Masakit din sabihin, yung problema mismo ng barangay ay siyang
mismo na sa mga tao rin nagmumula.”
(Kagawad Constantino Ilag)
“Hindi mawawala yung nagkakaroon siyempre ng mga magkakapitbahay
na hindi nagkakasundo-sundo.”
(Kagawad Hermie Tumale)
Subtheme 2: Improper waste management
Kagawad Ilag expresses his concern about the citizen’s lack of discipline when it comes to waste management. Citizens failed to segregate their garbage causing pollution within the community.
“Marami pong dapat na sila ay nagagawa ng kusa. O sana kung gusto man sanang magawa ay nagagawa ng maayos.Karaniwan na lang ay yung
tungkol sa basura, pag segregate.”
(Kagawad Constatino Ilag)
Theme 2: Agriculture
The agriculture sector of Barangay Bulihan seems to decline because of the increasing water levels in rice plantation, affecting the farmers.
Subtheme 1: Increase in water levels
Kagawad Hermie Tumale focuses on the agriculture sector of the barangay. According to him, the water levels of the rice plantation are high, despite the summer season. Due to the high-water level, some farmers are not able to plant rice, making the agriculture growth slump. He added that water is stuck in the plantation because of the poor drainage in the barangay.
“Meron po kasi ngayon ng hindi pa nakakapagtanim ng palay. Dapat sa panahon ngayon, namumula na sana ang mga palay natin, ang kaso nagkakaroon ng tubig, dahil siyempre wala ng madaanan ang tubig dahil sa dami ng subdivision natin. Nawawala na ng daanan ang tubig kaya yung ibang sakahan, matagal bago bumaba yung level ng tubig kaya hindi sila nakakapagtanim.”
(Kagawad Hermie Tumale)
Table 3: The Barangay Officials’ viewpoint towards the issues and their role in the community
Theme 1 Solutions
The Barangay Officials mentioned solutions they made to address the problems. These included passing ordinances and coordinating with the municipal level of government.
Subtheme 1 Ordinances
Kagawad Ilag passed an ordinance, though it is still not approved, he is hopeful that this will be the solution to minimize the violence in the barangay. He also looking forward to work with Philippine National Police to maintain the peace and order within the community.
“May mga napagkayarian, mga bagong ordinansang ipatutupad. Sana nga sa ginawa naming ordinansa na ay magbago ang sitwasyon. Ang total information dissemination ay hindi pa namin nahuhusto, gusto namin ay hustong-husto para walang dahilan ang tao para walang dahilan ang tao. Para kapag nahuli sila, tinekitan, at naparusahan ay wala silang makukwestiyon.
Sana nga sa kaso ko, yung kapulisan ay maging kaagapay namin sa pagbibigay ng disiplina sa tao. Paulit-ulit kaming lahat na kapag ito ay naumpisahan ay sana ito na ang magiging solusyon.”
(Kagawad Constantino Ilag)
Subtheme 2: Excavation of Rivers
To decrease the water levels in rice plantation, Kagawad Tumale asked help from the municipal government. They resort in excavating rivers so the water will flow back from the plantation to river.
“Lumapit kami sa ibang mga opisyal ng gobyerno para makatulong. Sa katanunayan niyan, nagbabakuna sila sa ilog para mas lumalim ang ilog at isa na ring paraan iyon para ang mga tubig na naiimbak sa mga palayan ay bumaba sa ilog para maging way papunta naman sa karagatan natin. Yun po ang nakikita natin isang solusyon na ngayon pa lang ay ginagawa po sa tulong po ng ating gobyerno.”
(Kagawad Hermie Tumale)
Theme 2: Role of Barangay Officials
At the end of the interview, the officials articulate their roles in the community as leaders.
Subtheme 1: Leader of the community
Citizens need leaders to guide them to a peaceful and orderly community. The role of barangay officials is to extend a hand to those who need help. They support their community to develop and succeed.
“Naniniwala naman ako na kapag walang magiging eader, ay walang susundin kahit papano. Kung ganiyan na nga na masasabi, yung kawalan ng disiplina, wala pang magtuturo o wala pang nangunguna siguro wala rin
mag-iimprove din kahit na katiting.”
(Kagawad Constantino Ilag)
“For example, na lang sa pamilya, kung walang magulang, ama o ina, mapapariwara ang mga anak mo. Katulad na lang dito sa barangay, kung walang barangay opisyal hindi natin magagabayan yung mga nangangailangan ng tulong. Kaya para sa akin, ito rin ang paraan maibalik naman
sa tao ang pagtulong sa kanila.”
(Kagawad Hermie Tumale)
Summary of Findings
The following are my findings in this study:
1. According to the Barangay officials, the two major problems that Barangay Bulihan faces are citizen’s lack of discipline and negative growth in agriculture sector.
2. The Barangay officials’ solutions to address these problems is to create ordinances and ask support from municipal government.
3. The Barangay officials believe that as leaders, they guide their community to succeed.
Conclusion
The barangay officials have a different viewpoint on the problems within the community. Compared to my previous study, the fundamental issues that citizens experience are flood and improper waste management. Meanwhile, the barangay officials recognize the citizens lack of discipline in waste management. And they also added the problems about the agriculture sector, particularly in the rice plantation. Though, one recognized the effect of subdivision constructions, but did not mention the flood issues.
The barangay officials’ answers heavily relied on their assigned committee in the barangay. They focus on a certain sector to maintain and organize.
The mismatch on the answers of the citizens and officials tells us that there are several problems within the community, and some remain unsolved. The citizens and officials both failed to see some of it because it is not part of their experiences.
Moreover, I suggest a more in-depth study about the challenges in the barangay because it covers a huge area and has an enormous number of constituents.
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