Dear Nanay,
A pleasant good day, po. I am one of your avid readers. I have had this huge question on my mind for a very long time now and I am confused as to whom I should address this concern of mine.
It is with regards to this provincial road na madadaanan po (that can be passed) before reaching our barangay. Our entire barangay and neighboring barangays are all cemented but this provincial road is not and really very ugly. I don’t know to whom we should address this concern. If it’s a provincial road shouldn’t it be done properly and cemented like other provincial roads?
Eh, pag buntis po ang dadaan sa kalsadang ito ay sa kalye pa lang manganganak na ng di oras. (If a pregnant woman passes over this road it’s rocky enough to make her give birth prematurely.) And sometimes it rains so hard you can’t see the road and there have been a lot of tricycles carrying passengers that have met with accidents there.
Ang gusto ko lang po ay maiparating itong mensahe ko kung kanino dapat. (I just want my message to be heard by the right people.) If we just keep quiet, it’s possible that our grandchildren and we would be old already before anything is done about this road of ours.
Who should we talk to?
J.
Dear J.,
I am not sure whom you need to approach to help you with your problem, but you might want to try to talk to your barangay captain or mayor and they might be able to help point you in the right direction. The only problem is that I do not know how effective it will be even if you find the proper government agency. I am sure that getting that provincial road repaired is not going to be as simple as you just filing a complaint or talking to someone in a government agency. Hindi ganoong kadali iyan. (It’s not that easy.)
You might also want to consider approaching media stations or investigative programs like XXX or Imbestigador. These programs can usually help complainants find the proper government agency to help them with their problems. In addition, getting the extra media attention might help expedite the repair of your road.
Sincerely,
Nanay
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What To Do With Old Books
Dear Nanay,
How do you do? It is a very nice feeling calling you “nanay” even though I do not know you personally. It is just a way of showing my great respect to a very distinguished person like you.
I have so many old pocketbooks … boxes of them, actually, sent by my sister from abroad through the years. I have read them all and am planning to sell them, though I do not know where. I hope you can enlighten me.
Boiecelle De Artadi
Dear Boiecelle,
There are a lot of secondhand bookstores in Recto near the university belt that may buy your books. However, I doubt they will pay very much for them. Do not expect to make so much money from the sale.
Another thing you might want to do is list your books for sale on the Internet. There are many auction sites or other websites where you can list things for sale. You can probably make more than if you sold them to a store, but because you might have to take care of many individual transactions, again it might not be worth your time.
Of course the other alternative you might want to consider is to just give your books to charity. There are so many schools and libraries that are desperately in need of books and giving your old books to these institutions or other charitable organizations will ensure that those books that once made you happy can continue making even more people happy as well.
Sincerely,
Nanay
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If you have a question, e-mail us at asknanay@nationalbookstore.com.ph or just drop your letter at drop boxes in all National Book Store branches nationwide.