Sometime in 1998 or 1999 I met a British guy in Manila. Upon learning that I was from Baguio City, he started ranting about our local politicians. Apparently, this guy was negotiating in behalf of a British Non-Profit that was hoping to put up an incinerator to solve the already burgeoning problem of waste disposal in the city. It was to be an honest-to-goodness Build-Operate-Transfer scheme as the Non-Profit was going to shoulder all costs. They were only asking that the City of Baguio provide the location for said incinerator.
He continues to tell me that the City Council then refused to sign any agreement unless they be given "grease money". The British Non-Profit, of course, declined, and so they decided to leave and pursue their project in Vietnam instead.
The local council today likes to blame Mother Nature with the ever-convenient "force majeure" as an excuse. I say, blame it on the local officials. What happened at the Irisan Dumpsite is a direct result of their lack of planning and management and corrupt practices. They ought to be liable for this.
note: I only met this British guy once, and I have failed to write down notes, nor get his name. It has been more than ten years since this happened. Had I been a blogger then, I would've been more meticulous in my gathering of facts. This is basically a recollection of that exchange. But I still remember though certain names he mentioned who were members of the City Council during that period. I think I shall go through the council's files to investigate this further. I also urge the local media to look into this as well.
photo by Harley Palangchao taken from abs-cbn news
No comments:
Post a Comment