Preparing for a safe, fun summer

it’s summertime and the living is easy”, so goes the song. But nothing can be farther from the truth in the province’s peace and order context. Summer can mean a lot of headaches for everyone, from parents to their children, town officials to the police, beach resort owners to tourists, etc.

 

Every summer, a number of people die and get hurt for basically the same reasons but it surprises people that nothing much is being done to prevent the recurrence of these incidents.

 

There are the vehicular accidents along highways leading to resort or vacation destinations, drowning incidents on beaches and swimming pools, stabbing or shooting incidents in resort areas, the theft and robbery cases, etc.

 

It’s time our government officials exploit the summer season as the opportunity to organize for the people’s welfare.  It’s time they adopt and embark on conscious concerted efforts to make the province the safest and most fun summer vacation destination in the region.

 

Let’s start with the basic. Police visibility must be calibrated to be at its peak in areas leading to resort areas, whether these are privately-owned or government-managed. 

 

The barangay tanods must patrol videoke bars and restaurants religiously at night. Watch out for minors drinking beer and liquor, (and yes, ban the singing of Frank Sinatra’s My Way”).

 

Volunteer Highway Assistance groups should be positioned in the province’s other highways in addition to MacArthur Highway (Baguio – Manila route).

 

Local governments should require resort owners to employ Red Cross-trained lifeguards where swimming pools are offered for public use. For its part, local governments must deploy trained lifeguards equipped with motor bancas, in popular beach areas, i.e, Lingayen, Dagupan, San Fabian and Binmaley,  and strictly enforce a   “No Swimming” alert when waves are dangerously high (usually from 1-3 pm).

 

Then, expect the rise in theft of cellphones in the beach resorts and restaurants. It would help deter these thieveries if undercover policemen operate in these areas and pick out known police characters.

 

Then moving on, towns and cities should consider making the period the time to launch “The Cleanest Barangay of the year.” Then, health inspectors must set standards for clean rest rooms and strictly implement these in restaurants and gas stations with the help of barangay officials.

 

 The provincial government can organize local government units in adopting short fun/ educational/sports programs for the youth. (Why should the hosting of summer-seminars be limited to urban cities?) A town doesn’t need a fiesta to celebrate with its people. Summer is all you need to give a family or the whole barangay a respite from politics and the rigors of an economically trodden life.  

 

And all it takes are imaginative, pro-active public officials who can organize and take time to coordinate with the private sector, to get things done and serve public welfare.

 

The only buzz words for all these are SAFETY and FUN.

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