Worry about flooding

STILL, there seems to be no dredging going on in the rivers of Dagupan City, the area most prone to flooding in Pangasinan.

The city government — and other local government units around the province, especially those at risk of flooding — should take advantage of the dry season and initiate the digging up of heavily silted rivers and catch basins as well as clearing drainage pipes.

Even as there are predictions of an El Niño this year, it will be better to prepare for the worst and any eventuality because Mother Nature has shown us her fickleness in past years. Remember the unexpected major floodings in the province’s recent history brought about by typhoons: Typhoon Pepeng in 2009, Juan in 2010, Pedring and Quiel in 2011, and Gener in 2012 where no typhoon signal was raised over the province but still several towns were flooded.

It’s true that people have survived and risen from these calamities owing to easy adaptation and that hackneyed Filipino “resilience”. Our penchant for bahala na is perhaps an equal enemy as the unpredictable weather patterns.

With very poor planning in terms of infrastructure and land use both by the national and local governments, it would now be impossible to prevent regular flooding. But we can still minimize damage to life and properties by undertaking mitigating measures. Dapat ma-bahala.

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‘Last 2 minutes’

TWO minutes.  That was all it took to delete nearly five years of toiling for Aldrin Jeff Cudia to graduate — with honors even — from the esteemed Philippine Military Academy (PMA).  For being late two minutes in his next class, Cudia was dismissed from the country’s premier military school — only weeks before he was to be honored salutatorian of PMA Class 2014.  He said he was late because the professor in his previous class had asked his class “to stay a little longer.”  Cudia’s explanation to his professor in his next class didn’t jibe with that of his three classmates, who chorused it was the students who had asked “to stay a little longer”.

In his trial conducted by a nine-man committee composed of Cudia’s peers, Cudia was found guilty of lying and the same committee expelled him from the school.  The verdict was affirmed by the Cadet Review and Appeals Board and approved by Maj. Gen. Oscar Lopez, the PMA superintendent.  If President Aquino, as  the Commander in Chief, accepts the decision, then Cudia, from Brgy. Gatiawin, Arayat, Pampanga, will not graduate today (March 16), and Cudia’s No. 2 spot behind valedictorian Jheorge Llona of Daraga, Albay, will be taken by Liza Dango of Marawi City. Did Cudia really lie to draw the maximum punishment of dismissal? Avee, Cudia’s sister, said his brother did not lie because “he is inarticulate and had merely used the wrong choice of words.”  Indeed, why would Cudia lie when he knew that graduation was merely weeks away, that he’d even be in the Top 3 of his Class?  Was he set up?  Framed?  In the revered institution, there seems to be this dreaded eternal hatred against Kapampangans?

The nation awaits P-Noy’s decision with bated breath.

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