In the wake of severe tropical storm Kristine, the issue of flood-control projects has loomed very large on social media.
Here in San Pedro City, some netizens have been questioning the value of the extensive drainage rehabilitation currently conducted by the city government, which some claim didn’t really prevent the massive floods that hit parts of the city near the San Isidro River and Laguna de Bay.
Others, however, are quick to point out that unlike past years, when it took days or even months for flooding to recede, parts of San Pedro City that experienced a deluge due to “Kristine” were almost back to normal two days later. (Well, that is, except for the massive cleanup works to remove the mud and garbage that the storm left behind.)
-o0o-
All these talk about massive infrastructure that is needed for flood control (or the lack thereof) has had me thinking in the shower: the fact that all our flood-control projects has been “piecemeal” (as some critics charge) points out not just at the alleged massive corruption behind these projects, but the aversion of the average Filipino to large-scale infrastructure projects.
The reason: we are a nation who hates to be “inconvenienced.”
Magtapatan tayo: sa lahat ng mga malalaking proyekto, tiyak na may maaagrabyado.
Yun ngang itinatayong North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project sa ating lalawigan, tanggap na ng mga opisyal ng pamahalaan na marami ang kailangang ilipat ng tirahan dahil nga sa nasabing proyekto.
Tanggap na rin nila na mayroon talagang magmamatigas at aayaw na malipat ng tirahan – which is why LGUs here in the province, along with national government agencies, have spent millions on relocation sites for families affected by the NSCR.
-o0o-
Pero hindi lang nakikita ang pagka-ayaw natin sa inconvenience sa mga malalaking proyekto ng pamahalaan. Sa simpleng road-widening o asphalting project pa nga lang, nagmumura na ang mga residente. Sasabihing walang puso si Mayor, na sinira niya ang everyday routine nila. Magbabanta pa na hindi sila iboboto sa susunod na halalan dahil inagrabyado raw ang araw-araw nilang pamumuhay.
Ito ang dahilan kung bakit ilag na ilag ang ilang pulitiko sa mga malalaking proyekto na magbibigay ng pangmatagalang ginhawa sa mga tao.
Hindi lang dahil hindi mo naman pwedeng balutin ng pangalan mo yung tulay o yung flood-control project, di tulad ng paliga sa basketball na kitang-kita ang pangalan mo, hindi lang dahil baka hindi ito ipagpatuloy kung wala na sila sa poder, kundi dahil na rin sobrang unpopular nito sa mga botante na ayaw na ayaw maagrabyado.
This is the truth we all have to accept, and I think it can all be summarized in four words: panandaliang hirap = pangmatagalang ginhawa.
Our fixation with small-scale, piecemeal projects (that, may we point out, cost millions that were probably lost in corruption) will inevitably end up costing more for us.
Hindi lang perang nasayang, kundi buhay na nalagas, ari-ariang nasira, economic opportunities na tinangay sa isang iglap – dahil lang sa ayaw nating ma-“inconvenienced.”
#WeTakeAStand #OpinYon #OpinYonColumn #ColumnbyJamesVeloso #UnCommonSense