PERHAPS many of our readers would like to ask why we seem not to tire harping on the issue of the non-distribution of a good number of garbage bins delivered over two years ago to recipient barangays. And we mean the garbage bins that are just being piled in some corners of barangay covered courts or within the barangay hall compound. All these garbage receptacles are supposed to be distributed to strategic locations in the barangay so households and some small commercial establishments can dispose of their waste.
However, since the bins’ delivery to the recipient barangays shortly before the onset of the pandemic which was more than two years ago, no one, not even barangay officials, knows why these have been simply “displayed” like these were delicate artifacts. In other words the garbage bins that cost the city an enormous sum of money are simply rendered useless. These have been left to deteriorate being exposed to the elements of nature and the destructive tendencies of some barangay residents.
We have no idea how many are these bins. But if we have to reckon with the number of rural barangays that are beneficiaries of these resources from the city, by just allocating 20 or perhaps 30 bins per recipient barangays, then it is easy to imagine the total of these currently idle city resources.
Knowing the “normal” procurement processes of government we can be certain that the total cost of the waste bins could be in millions of pesos. And yet these are just left displayed as if banding around that the city has too much money.
And despite our efforts to have this wastage brought to the consciousness of our local government officials and the public, it appears that not a single action to have the garbage bins distributed to locations in the barangays where these should be is being done.
We do not know if it is pure callousness or ineptitude of those people in city government agencies in charge of looking into the environment and sanitation that is preventing the distribution of the bins. But what we are certain about is that they sure know that the bins procurement was authorized by the city council; that when the bins arrived these were delivered to the recipient barangays for no other reason but to be used for the disposal of garbage.
So, we have all the reasons to assume that as of now, the members of the City Council could not have been aware of the status of the same city resources that they have set aside sizeable money if only to acquire but only to be dumped for no apparent reasons.
Considering the seeming inaction of the concerned departments of Davao City government on the issue, we are now calling on the Sangguniang Panlungsod to look into the matter. We believe that the local legislative body has to investigate the circumstances that cause a serious dent on the city’s financial resources yet allowed to remain unutilized for a long period of time already.
Of course the members of the Davao City Council may feel that they are not obliged to conduct a probe on the matter. After all, after their assumption to office seldom will they go down or up to the rural barangays to check on the areas’ physical condition as well as the living conditions of residents.
They might be thinking that the rural barangays still have so much space and whatever garbage produced by the households therein, even if these are piled up or indiscriminately disposed of may still not be able to disturb the sanitation and ideal situation in the rural environment.
Therefore, it could be possible that looking into the undistributed garbage bins is not yet a priority of the local legislative body.
However, we are a believer in the saying, “Hope springs eternal.” That is, that investigating a somewhat relevant public concern, is one among the Council’s many responsibilities.
