The ‘Duh’ and the ‘Aha’ chorus

By Ermin Garcia Jr.

Here’s an interesting item that went largely unnoticed in local media circles.

The chairman of the National Union of Journalists was ousted as officer and member three months ago for breaching the union’s by-laws and the Journalist’s Code of Ethics! What caused it would make our local media practitioners gape in wonderment.

Joe Torres, then chairman, was scheduled to travel overseas for NUJP. To augment his travel allowance, he reportedly sounded off an old friend, now a politician, about his need. The call was received in the presence of an NUJP member. The problem arose when the politician chided the union member with him for having an organization that cannot even support the travel of its officials. The humiliated member reported the incident to the board and an investigation was promptly called.

Mr. Torres was eventually cited for violating NUJP’s by-laws, to wit: “To raise the standards of journalistic ethics towards the end goal of securing press freedom and protecting the integrity of the working press in the country.”

And the Journalist’s Code of Ethics? That which read: “I shall not let personal motives or interests influence me in the performance of my duties, nor shall I accept or offer any present, gift or other consideration that may cast doubt on my professional integrity – I shall conduct myself while performing my duties as journalist in such manner as to maintain the dignity of my profession. When in doubt, decency should be my watchword.”

How’s that for sustaining integrity in the practice? But am I hearing a chorus from the officers of PPRC, Patrima and other media clubs saying “DUH”? The pols and gambling lords saying “AHA”!

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LIP SERVICE AT THE CITY HALL. The final resolution of the problem posed by the continued pollution of the Dagupan beach by the Dagupan District Jail City at the Tondaligan Beach, cannot be hoped to be obtained if the Dagupan City government does not act firmly and with unqualified resoluteness.

While City Health Officer Leonardo Carbonell may have recommended specific activities for the district jail to comply with, there is the question of compliance. The recommended frequent dislodging of the jail’s septic tank is obviously not being complied as residents in the area report that the jail’s wastes are still being dumped into the sea at night, under the cover of darkness!

City Administrator Alvin Fernandez and the city council’s chairmen of the separate committees on health and environment should step forward and assume a more pro-active stance in monitoring the dumping of wastes by the district jail. I don’t believe the bureau of jail management and penology was ever cited for violating the city’s ordinance and the country’s environmental laws. The city government cannot even think to begin how to strictly enforce its touted sanitation code in this situation.

Curiously, even Rep. Joe de V under whose district the jail operates, has not lifted a finger.

Right now, all we can sense is hot air and lip service inside city hall and a helluva stink at the Tondaligan beach.

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ANOTHER POSSIBLE LEGACY. Guv Spines and the provincial board would be well-advised to ensure that the province’s long shoreline is protected from further degradation. Our beaches are the province’s primary destinations and, therefore, a forward-looking government must ensure that laws are legislated to protect these from wanton destruction by residents and local governments who have no care for our natural assets.

A summit among mayors and barangay chiefs of coastal towns and cities to draft laws and guidelines for the purpose of ensuring the conservation of our beach shores will be timely. There are already hundreds of lessons that can be drawn from the past care and conservation efforts of the province’s beaches. The development of Dagupan’s Tondaligan Park alone is a case study of what should NOT be. An ocular tour of the area should make them wonder how the city government made a mess of its natural assets.

Should Guv Spines, the province’s numero uno tourist guide, decide to be the leading light in this effort, he would surely leave a legacy in making Pangasinan beaches one among the best in the country, if not in Asia.

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