Now, it’s the firemen under fire

By Bebot Vilar

 

OVER the past weeks, it was the scalawag policemen in the news. Last Tuesday, in the news was about a Manila fireman being indicted by the Ombudsman for extortion. He attempted to victimize one businessman applying for a fire safety inspection certificate, a requirement for a business permit!

Ni-require ng bomber ang negosyante na bumili ng anim na fire extinguishers at tatlong exits signs na may ilaw for his establishment. The businessman agreed and bought the items. Pero, nang papipirmahan na ng negosyante ang certificate, nagalit ang bumbero dahil binili ng negosyante sa ibang tindahan ang mga fire extinguishers. Cheaper by P2,000 kasi ang price sa pinagbilhan niya kaysa sa inirekomendang store ng bumbero.

Pero, dahil sa nabili na ang mga fire extinguishers, sinabihan ng bumbero ang negosyante na bayaran na lang siya ng P10,000 which could have been his commission before he signs the fire safety inspection certificate. After some negotiation, they agreed on P4,000.

At dito na nagsagawa ng entrapment operation ang National Bureau of Investigation para wakasan na ang pangongotong ng bumbero at idemanda siya ng Ombudsman.

Sa totoo lang, napakarami nang nagsumbong sa akin hinggil sa katarantaduhang ito ng mga bumbero. Dito na nga lang sa Pangasinan, may mga ilang katulad na pangyayari pa rin tayo nababalitaan. We have called the attention of concerned officials about these incidents. Nakakalungkot at nakakainis lang na until today, may mga kalokohang pa ring ganito despite the government’s consistent efforts to purge its ranks of misfits and scalawags.

At the rate things are going, wala na yatang kinatatakutan ang mga gumagawa ng katarantaduhan na nasa gobyerno. Or, do they do it thinking that there is nothing wrong with extortion since they are doing public service anyway?

Kaya sa mga ibang bumbero riyan na hindi pa rin tumitigil sa pangongotong sa mga negosyante, mabibisto rin kayo and surely, you will regret it!

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There are four out of five Filipinos without savings bank accounts, ayon sa survey na ng Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas noong 2012.

This is a very interesting finding because one begins to wonder where and how most Filipinos keep their money. Do people still use the bamboo alkansya? Do they keep their money under their pillows?

The surveys showed na many still practice “paluwagan,” a tradition where participants pool their money and take turns in receiving the sum, without interest earned. They don’t see the need for a savings account or to high minimum deposit in the bank.

Mas lalago nga ba ang ating economy at mararamdaman kaya ng ordinary mamamayan ang pag-unlad kung tatlo o apat sa bawat limang Pilipino ay may savings account??

Kung mas maraming may bank accounts, mas lalaki rin ang deposit base ng mga banko at mas maraming pera ang maipapautang nila sa mga negosyante. At kung mas maraming negosyo, mas marami rin ang magkakaroon ng hanapbuhay. At kung mas maraming may hanap-buhay, mas gaganda ang pamumuhay.

Parang napaka-simple. Pero, siyempre ang anumang proseso tungo sa pag-unlad ay mabagal kung minsan at nakakabagot. Kailangan lamang natin maghintay.

Siguro, this is one campaign that we should help, ang madagdagan ang may mga savings accounts among us but to do this, there must be an intensive information campaign to motivate people to open a savings account. There could be misconceptions about banking at naghihintay lang sila ng explanation to convince them to trust banks.

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Since P/Supt. Chris Abrahano assumed as police chief last year, some P4 million worth of illegal drugs have been seized in several raids in the city.

This is big. And if we are to compute the extent of damage of these illegal drugs to our youth, had they not been seized, that cannot be quantified. Kaya nga, we congratulate Mayor Belen Fernandez for taking the lead in Dagupan City in the campaign against illegal drugs. Alam kong magpapatuloy ito hangga’t hindi tuluyang mapuksa ang salot na droga.

Marahil marami pa rin ang nagtatanong kung bakit despite the effort, mukhang marami pa rin ang nahuhuling mga pushers at users at parang hindi sila nauubos? Ito po ay perception ng marami dahil nga araw-araw ay may huli ang ating mga law enforcers at agad namang naibabalita ang mga accomplishments na ito sa media.

Our local officials and law enforcers can’t do this alone. They need the help of the community, lalo na ang mga parents. Kaya nga ako ay natuwa talaga nang i-reactivate ang Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council (PADAC) ng Pangasinan because every segment of the local government ay kasama natin sa probinsya. This will make a big difference in our campaign.

Sa kampanya laban sa iligal na droga, wala pong malaki o maliit na tulong. Kahit sa simpleng pagti-text lang sa pulis tungkol sa mga taong inaakala niyo ay gumagamit o nagtutulak ng droga, isang malaking tulong na po ito.

We must be united in the effort to make our communities drug-free, from the purok, barangay, town, and province. Nakaya na pong gawin ito ng ilang bayan sa ating bansa. Wala akong dudang kaya rin po ninyo itong gawin.

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