THE OBSERVER
By Glenn Vidal Beup

There’s something wrong about the way the Department of Social Welfare and Development handled the distribution of cash incentives for the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4P’s) beneficiaries in Pilar, Capiz last March 1, 2012.

The instruction was they have to be at the civic center of Pilar; the time of the release of cash incentives not indicated. Then, the venue was too small for the 3,600 beneficiaries. The food has gone out because some restaurants in the vicinity failed to anticipate the unexpected customers. As a result, some beneficiaries collapsed due to intense heat and hunger.

The reason why the beneficiaries qualified for the 4P’s was because they are poor. Placing them in an agonizing situation further aggravated their feeling of being indigents. Although they have to content themselves with the government’s assistance, they must be afforded with dignity and respect. Kabudlay mangin imol!

The DSWD should always take the side of the disadvantaged sector of the society. The agency could have established a system that was more convenient for the recipients during the distribution of incentives. The setting last March 1 was not fit for long speeches or a site to rebuke beneficiaries who failed to follow instructions. There is nothing wrong if the occasion was graced by politicians, provided the DSWD treated the recipients more humanely and with respect. Tama?

* * *

A TNT newsboy got berated by a staff of Mayor Alan Celino after the good mayor allegedly instructed him that the circulation of The News Today at the Mayor’s Office must be immediately stopped. Even the circulation made by the City Legal Officer was put to a halt since according to the staff, it is still the mayor who pays for the subscription. I now have the name of this person and I hope his attitude does not reflect that of the mayor’s.

The TNT does not charge the mayor’s office for the copy of the newspaper delivered to him daily. It is for free.

The mayor’s staff forgot that his salary is being taken out from taxpayers’ money.

I knew that Mayor Celino does not have the manner of suppressing the circulation of The News Today within the City Hall. I have known the Hon. Mayor when he was still a city councilor, while this writer was assigned a city hall beat reporter of Bombo Radyo Roxas.

The then City Councilor was once a great source of credible information worth reporting. He continues to remain humble after he was elected as Vice Mayor of Roxas City as we frequently bumped against each other since he is a regular patron of Sta. Barbara Golf and Country Club while I am serving as Municipal Administrator of the said town.*

| THE OBSERVER | By Glenn Beup |

The Capiz Sugar Central (CSC) in President Roxas, Capiz was wrongly accused last year of throwing indiscriminately its industrial refuse along the Dulangan River which resulted to the death of marine life and other biodiversity of the river. The allegation stemmed from the complaint of village officials of Dulangan in Pilar who were severely affected due to the pollutants pitched into the river. The issue was investigated by the provincial board which ultimately slept and without any conclusion.

Even the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources did not have a closing stage as to the result of the water sampling the agencies took from the river. The perpetrator went unpunished! If the examination had gone deeper, the architect behind the felony has been made known. The provincial board even conducted an out-of-town session which became a venue for grandstanding. Anak ng tinapa!

Geographically, Dulangan River is quite a distance from President Roxas, Capiz. The Dulangan River does not even connect with the water ways in President Roxas. Placing the issue on fishkill and putting the blame against the CSC is unfair. The complaint made by the village officials against the CSC is quite intriguing if not interesting.

Here is the story: Prior to last year’s incident, a Roxas City-based security agency secured a contract with the Capiz Sugar Central. Despite the several notices issued by the CSC management, the security agency continued to commit organizational lapses. The security guards had to wear worn-out uniforms while some security personnel lacked basic security trainings; a handful of them, according to my information, cannot even write their names! The ordinary security guards had to use use “paltik” service firearms. Worse, the security agency’s permit has already expired which displeased the CSC management who then terminated the agency’s contract. The CSC ended the security agency services in January last year and several days after, the fishkill occurred on the very same month! What a coincidence!

The crime committed against the marine resources is unforgivable and the destruction it has produced against the livelihood of the lowly fishermen is something to bemoan. Was it a self-inflicted damage?

Has the termination of the security agency’s contract with the CSC last January last year something to do with the fishkill? Is there a village official who initiated such compliant related to the owner of the security agency? The provincial board should have explored other possible directions! Tama?

* * *

According to my reliable source, a local government unit is disposing its unserviceable heavy equipment by chopping it into smaller pieces that are sold to junk shops. Government properties that are no longer in use as a result of depreciation or old age should be disposed, according to COA rules and regulations. Better stop it now or I will disclose in due time the name of the LGU and the local officials involved in this latest hullabaloo! Mga demongking!*