OCTOBER 13 - OCTOBER 19, 2019 4


OPINION EDITORIAL


Trash talk


The time has finally come to squarely face the garbage issue in Dumaguete. It had to take a dramatic arrest of 10 garbage collectors and drivers of the City for everyone to come to their senses, and end the business-as-usual mindset in dealing with the garbage problem. Now, we read about appeals to the


public to undertake a serious trash segregation drive. If we remember it correctly, the garbage issue is actually a barangay concern.


Barangays are supposed to have their respective Materials Recovery Facility which would go a long way in reducing waste brought to the City dumpsite in barangay Candau-ay.


program in any of Dumaguete’s barangays to reduce waste. (If there is, we’d love to see it and feature it here.) We have taken note of the efforts of


We have yet to hear of a feasible


the City to find alternative solutions to the garbage problem by scouting for a new dumpsite within the City, and sometimes going even farther south and north, to no avail. Of course, nobody likes to live beside or within smelling distance of a garbage dump. And it only smells because biodegradable garbage decays. We are not supposed to throw


biodegradable garbage at the City dump in the first place.


Rather, we should dig a hole in our respective yards, and bury dried leaves, leftover food, and other stuff that rots away so they become part of the soil. Garbage is not just a City problem -- it is everyone’s problem; it is our problem. We all have a stake in this issue, and we should all not just limit our task to throwing garbage away (whereever “away” is) but we have a duty to be responsible for our own garbage that we generate. So before we buy anything, let us


Yes, garbage is real. And we can definitely do something about it in our own little ways.


METROPOST


ATTY. WHELMA SITON-YAP ECON 101 whelmayap@yahoo.com T


Fever (ASF) does not cause any health problems to humans, but once tainted pork is ingested, or if people get too close to infected meat, we can become carriers of the virus. It is good to know that the


government is implementing measures to curb the spread of ASF.


has been processed or canned, the virus can survive.


and highly contagious for pigs, with no known cure. It can be transmitted


think first of what will happen to the packaging (plastic container, bottle, aluminum can, or box) that comes with the product.


African swine fever is fatal


through contaminated feeds, and even through non-living objects such as shoes, clothes, and knives, due to the virus’ high resistance.


However, even if the meat


he National Meat Inspection Service has said that African Swine


Agriculture has confirmed that ASF has caused deaths of hundreds of pigs, warthogs, and boars in several areas in Luzon.


It causes pigs to have high fever and lose their appetite.


It also causes hemorrhages in their skin and internal organs. More than 7,400 pigs have been culled from farms in villages in Rizal and Bulacan provinces that were feared to have been hit by the viral infection in recent months. Is the government doing


something to contain the disease? This is really a


JG UMBAC THE WAY IT IS bjplug@gmail.com


Member, Philippine Press Institute


ALEX REY V. PAL Publisher & Editor-in-Chief (On-leave) IRMA FAITH B. PAL Managing Editor


JOEL V. PAL Online News/North America Editor RICHLI D. AVES Cartoonist


2018 National Awardee: Best in Photojournalism 2017 National Awardee: Best in Photojournalism 2017 Best in Visayas: Best in Photojournalism, Best Editorial Page, Best Edited Community Newspaper 2016 Best in Visayas: Best in Photojournalism, Best in Environment Reporting, Best Editorial Page, Best Edited Community Newspaper 2007 National Awardee: Best Editorial Page


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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- Once upon a time, those who were accepted to the Philippine Military Academy were special, almost with God-given vocations, like priests, destined to serve their country with selfless devotion, to protect those who cannot defend themselves, and to answer their country’s call with COURAGE, INTEGRITY, LOYALTY.


It was a time long ago when Filipinos felt the utmost pride when a son, a relative or friend was accepted to the prestigious institution that in the past had given the country countless


military men, some later becoming civilian heads of government departments, while still some becoming politicians.


trustworthy


integrity as officers and civilians even through the most trying times in our country’s history, and in whatever position they were entrusted with. They protected the


public’s trust zealously. They were incorruptible. They were the go-to kind of individuals when total integrity and trustworthiness were


time did we have any doubt in those honorable officers and gentlemen. They maintained their


Never at that distant


Today, whatever pride we’ve always had in the PMA, and in those who have walked through her proud halls and marched her hallowed parade grounds, have all but crumbled in the wake of the recent revelations that have come out of the investigations on the Good Conduct Time Allowance law—the case of the ‘ninja cops’.


Senate inquiry into this, as has been extensively shown in the news and


If you have watched the


posted on YouTube, you surely must have seen the utter unprofessionalism that these, these products of the PMA of the past 40 years, have shown.


I cringe as I watch these dishonest excuses for officers (majors, colonels, generals) displaying their deviousness, perpetrating fraud


government and the people


to whom they have sworn an oath.


against the


Do you feel assured? The Department of


nagging problem since most people always look forward to the presence of Mr. Lechon in every gathering or party. Agriculture Sec. William Dar has reported that seven areas in two provinces in Luzon have been affected by ASF: in Rizal, the areas of San


Who’s afraid of ASF?


Jose, Macabud, San Isidro, San Rafael, Mascap, and Cupang in Antipolo; Bulacan, the area of Guiguinto. Lab tests have confirmed


that African swine fever caused the death of pig herds in at least seven villages near Manila.


A multi-agency body will be set up to ensure the highly-


contagious disease does not spread further,DA officials said.


said in a news conference that 16 out of 20 blood samples sent to a British lab tested positive for the disease, but further tests were needed.


“What hit us...we don’t know which one among the 35 strains,” Dar lamented, referring to the different strains of the virus with varying degrees of lethality.


the infections, Agriculture authorities in our Province state that they are in control of the problem, and will further tighten quarantine checks, including in airports and seaports, and crack down on smuggling of imported meat to prevent large-scale outbreaks. They have assured that local pork supply and prices will remain normal.


exercised to prevent the entry of meat from sources outside the Province. Let us just enjoy our delicious NegOr lechon. Basta NegOr, okay pa sa alright! Happy Buglasan! Rain or shine, basta dili mo ulan!


through their teeth, each covering his own ass, even at the expense of total personal embarrassment. How, on God’s green


Extreme caution should be Despite confirmation of In addition, Secretary Dar


earth, can professional military officers, products of the country’s most respectable military academy, not know what happens in their own commands?


They have the most skewed interpretation of how senior officers should take care of their own, taking it as far as covering their people’s dishonorable deeds or crimes.


Those who disgrace the uniform required.


Clearly, they have not learned the one thing that all officers are charged with knowing—owning command responsibility. These sorry excuses


have graduated from the PMA who, as far as I can recall, were all working outside of the military


I know some people who


for officers have shown the ugliest examples that any military officer could pos sibly show subordinates—lying, conniving, stealing, concealing, etc.


It is clear, in the way they answer the Senate’s questions, they are lying


when I came to know them. To me, it didn’t matter—I had a special kind of respect for them simply because they were PMA’ers. Their being such preceded them, and to me, if the Academy was prestigious, they were prestigious, beyond reproach. It wasn’t an easy thing to be accepted into the PMA. Those who did get accepted truly had something going for them, and they had what it took for the institution to mold


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