Who’s accountable?

TREAT Mother Nature kindly and we are guaranteed to harvest her bounty. Treat her harshly and we can be sure to suffer her wrath. We have again been reminded of this simple and basic law of nature when greed and corruption led to yet another fishkill in Anda and Bolinao two weeks ago, following an even worse situation in the southern provinces in Luzon.

When are we ever going to learn? We ask this in particular to our local government officials who are responsible for the direct regulation of aquaculture industries and are at the forefront of protecting our natural resources.

For a start, laws will have to be sorted and the municipal or city councils must take the lead in checking whether there are ordinances in place on how natural resources should be used to ensure sustainability, appropriate penalties for violations, and who can be made accountable for abuses and damages.

The new ordinance on penalties for botcha traders in Dagupan, for example, is a welcome development. But at the same time, it is a classic illustration of a reactionary kind of governance given the recent events. What we need, and now is a good time to ponder on this as we are celebrating Environment Month this June, are strong legal foundations partnered by a program with a vision for the long-term.

Ultimately, protecting the environment and our natural resources depends on local government leaders who have the political will to implement regulations, have reason to fear that they can be made accountable for corruption and negligence, and have the heart to care for Mother Nature.

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Untouchables

THOSE that ought to remain are leaving — Albert Romulo as Foreign Affairs secretary, and Ping de Jesus as Transportation and Communication chief.  They haven’t stayed a year in office and they said goodbye to P-Noy. What gives?

Those that ought to leave, if not to be sacked, have remained.  Untouchables?  They include Rico Puno at Interior and Local Government, Virgie Torres at LTO and Lito Alvarez at Customs. What gives?

Good that prison head Totoy Diokno has finally resigned, sparing P-Noy of another black eye.

The case of Ping takes the cake.  He was a Cory loyalist and, under P-Noy, Ping was a good, honest soldier.  Ping had wanted Virgie relieved over a grave administrative indiscretion.  P-Noy disagreed, merely telling Virgie to go on leave. A stung Ping, a man of honor, resigned.

Is P-Noy floundering? Seemingly, the signs are there.

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