Bridging the classroom gap

The state of the country’s educational system is by itself a gargantuan problem, fraught by many issues and concerns. I had the pleasure of talking to my friend Roy Zosa, president & CEO of Sierra Madre Water Corp., and an active Rotary member, and discussed some of his ideas.

Our public school system, in particular, is beset by problems such as the lack of classrooms, books and teachers. Students have their fair share of problems, foremost is poverty, and consequently the inadequate nutrition to sustain the demands of study.

In line with the President’s direction to seek private enterprise as well as civil societies’ help in lending a hand towards alleviating some of our more pressing problems, Roy and his group with the support of Congresswoman Thelma Z. Almario of Davao Oriental chose to champion the cause of inadequate classrooms by reaching out to civic organizations like the Rotary and Jaycees.

Roy believes that the task of reducing (and ultimately eliminating) the deficiency in the number of classrooms is not difficult to achieve, even with the current budgetary problems haranguing our government provided these civic organizations pitch in.

Going the GK way

The idea involves a partnership of government, civic organizations and the local community, loosely patterned after Gawad Kalinga and its mission of building houses for homeless Filipino families through private sector and local community partnerships.

In the case of the classroom-building project, government through the Department of Education will release the materials needed to construct a classroom building, which is estimated to be below 50 percent of the acceptable budget for completing one, to the civic organization and the community.

The community and the private sector’s volunteerism efforts will provide for the labor and skills to construct the school buildings. Even the help of students from colleges and universities may be harnessed. The GK model has demonstrated that this system is feasible and sensible.

Overall, not only will this effort double the number of school buildings planned for the fiscal year, it will also create a synergistic effect in the building of other government infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, markets, and health centers.

Roy also stated that Congresswoman Almario, a supporter of this idea in the House, agrees that the other possible windfall from this undertaking if it succeeds will be a higher level of awareness – and hopefully better scrutiny – by the community as to where the Countryside Development Funds (or pork barrel) appropriated to their area is going to.

Protection for potential Pandacan victims

We have readers who reacted to our column last Aug. 6 and 13 on the continued presence of the oil companies’ Pandacan petroleum depots in the midst of one of Metro Manila’s most densely populated community. Antonio Santos is one of them, who wrote us the following:

“We are encouraged by your recent article re Pandacan Oil Depot.

“For your information, we at the Advocates for Environmental and Social Justice (AESJ), a peoples’ organization of individuals and organizations based in Pandacan, consistent with our cry for the relocation of said facility, have recently launched a signature campaign asking the Big 3 to secure insurance protection for residents of Pandacan within the two- kilometer radius of the depot.

“This move does not mean that we are allowing them to stay in Pandacan for any extended period, but only to provide contingency while we are pursuing all legal means to get them out to a safer location.

“Do we remember it right that you were once a spokesperson for one of these oil companies? Thank you for taking our cause into your concern.”

In defense of the oil companies

From Ed Mislang, another view with regards the continued stay of the oil companies in Pandacan. Please read on.

“I read with interest your topic in regard to the Pandacan oil depot.

“You see, I don’t quite agree with your proposition that the oil companies leave and relocate away from the populace that has engulfed the area. A good place is probably the North Harbor as being initiated by Petron.

“My point here is: why should the oil companies relocate when they were the pioneers in the area 50 years ago. Pandacan then may have been desolate or barren when they started building their depots.

“But then employees started building their homes on the fringes to be near their place of work and save on transportation expenses. That was the fault of the city government for not implementing strictly zoning regulations, allowing people to build their homes where the depots are. And then the blame is heaped on the oil depots for inviting risks or even terrorist attacks by their being close to a heavily populated area.

“Okay, granted the oil companies move their depots to North Harbor. What’s to prevent the same employees or others to relocate too in the area to save on transportation expenses or for easy accessibility to work, and heavily populate it too? Not only that, they may demand transportation allowances or shuttle facilities. (This would be) additional costs that may be passed on by the oil companies to consumers, right?

“If ever the depots move to North Harbor, I think the city government should share in the relocation costs for its inability to stem the exodus then, and to monitor that no such migration may occur this time.”

One of our online readers, robbietan , writes:

“(It) looks like this writer has missed an obvious point (intentional?). Petron and those oil depots in Pandacan were there long before there was a ‘populace’ that could be endangered.

“Many old timers swear that the depots were in unpopulated area and it is the idiotic squatters who chose to live near potential disaster. Now the squatters have political friends who appeal to cry-babies about dangers these depots pose.”

The debate goes on. Hopefully nothing happens at Pandacan in the meantime.

Invitation for collegiate basketball fans

Students and collegiate basketball fans are invited to join the three ongoing surveys being conducted by the Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) through its official website, www.collegiatechampionsleague.net. Survey ends on Sept. 3, 2010.

Visit www.CollegiateChampionsLeague.net for more details about the 2010 Philippine Collegiate Championship games. 

Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 25th Floor, 139 Corporate Center, Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected]. For a compilation of previous articles, visit www.BizlinksPhilippines.net.