Billboards resurrected!
November 11, 2006 | 12:00am
They’re back from the dead! Or rather, they appeared with the dead last All Saint’s Day – commercial banners, I mean. Commercialism shows no respect for the living or the dead. The medium is the message and the message is "Buy, buy, buy… until you die." The cemeteries and memorial parks and all the roads leading to them were chock full of banners.
I received this e-mail, which apparently circulated among all the advocacy websites and chat rooms. Leo M. (who attached several pictures – some reprinted here) wrote:
"The cemetery is the place we bury our dead and on All Saints/Souls day, people come for a spiritual purpose. But at the Dumaguete Memorial Park, the owners (and a communications company) took advantage of the place for commercial purposes. One would think that a cemetery, like this memorial park, would be the last bastion of peace, serenity and tranquility, free of commercial intrusions. That’s why we pay for these services. Is nothing sacred anymore?"
Sorry, Leo, nothing can escape the horrid tentacles of crass billboards and banners (or banners and billboards that crash). Just recently the MMDA was prevented yet again from removing what clearly was illegal billboard advertising atop bus stops. Another one of those cursed TROs was levied on chairman Fernando and his blue-clad boys. His comment was a restrained, "It’s so sad."
Sad indeed as we are seeing billboards unfurling again. A consultation meeting organized by the DPWH was supposed to be held Nov. 8 to get an agreement going on the billboard moratoria and steps to finally rid the rest of the metropolis of illegal billboards (reportedly 97 percent of existing ones are illegally constructed). The Outdoor Advertisers Association of the Philippines, I’m sure, attended.
Groups representing individual and consolidated interests of outdoor advertising service providers and advertising agencies have been sending out press releases and gotten some of these features printed. The irritating one doing the rounds calls for the return of "good billboards." The article (reprinted in several broadsheets) showcases examples of "creative" outdoor advertising. No doubt these are creative and may have even won prizes for cleverness. The problem is that billboard advertisers here are too clever – subverting national building codes and compromising people’s lives just to get their message across.
Some big outdoor advertisers (clients, not the billboard contractors) are reportedly looking for options to giant billboards that are as effective but less dangerous. The issue here is that unless a good law is enacted and strictly enforced, these giant billboards will survive to kill yet again.
The problem has been with us since the 1920s when outdoor advertising started cropping above tranvia waiting sheds and against buildings in Manila’s bustling downtown and along the Pasig River – then still used as a major transport avenue. This started to worry certain sectors of Manila’s citizenry, who forced ordinances to be enacted (which should still be in effect today). A zoning plan to control development in the city was also prepared. The city was able to control billboards and Manila’s pre-war avenues and boulevards were disciplined, clear of obstructions and pleasant.
The op-ed clamor in the papers has died down. The Filipino public’s short attention span is kicking in; soon, death-by-billboard will go the way of other disasters, where the culprits are not punished and their future recurrence not prevented. That’s why we have a constant cycle of debilitating catastrophes like boats sinking, landslides, floods… and elections.
Speaking about elections, is the foot-dragging on the billboard issue because politicos feel they need this medium for their campaigns next year? I remember a time when electoral banners and posters were limited to certain spots in the city. Good luck to anyone trying to revive this splendid idea. I can’t wait for the city to be plastered with the faces of so-called public servants in obscene redundancy. Who will clean up that mess next year?
Anyway, back to the problem at hand. With Christmas already here there is immense pressure to relax the whole billboard moratorium and get on with the orgy of consumption (pushed to a great extent by outdoor advertising) that is our modern-day celebration of Christmas. The chances of the billboard law being passed soon seem to very small – the congressmen and senators are already busy with their shopping.
As I said before, it’s up to ordinary citizens to continue to put pressure on advertisers and government. There are alternatives to billboards. Signage kiosks are smaller in scale and friendlier to pedestrians and the urban environment. Bus, train, taxi and FX advertising has not been exploited to the hilt. Bus stops could be better designed and incorporate advertising into its structure without overwhelming either pedestrian or commuter.
I am not against outdoor advertising. It can be allowed (although I much prefer a noise-free environment) with extreme controls. If billboards were to come back eventually, their size has to be contained. A report states that under the present law, the allowable height of a billboard is 3.6 meters with a surface area of not more than 30 square meters. But no, no! I change my mind. The ban must be total. Billboards are an addiction and the only way to stop is to stop cold turkey.
With Thanksgiving near – not that we celebrate this American holiday – what have we got to be thankful for? Okay, maybe a stronger peso and a Supreme Court showing a bit of cojones. That said, the oil is still there in Guimaras, the "new" airport is still not open, our population is still skyrocketing and our citizens still yearning to leave for abroad.
I dread Christmas. That, too, is an addiction for Filipinos. We have to have our two-month hit – to ease the pain. We will have egg-nogged brains for the season. After the Santa drug wears off, our problems will all be resurrected. Oh, but then there’s Chinese New Year, and not long after that, Holy Week, then summer… we’ve forgotten to clear the esteros and prepare for the floods. Floods are caused by typhoons. Remember those? Wasn’t it only recently people were injured and died when some billboards were knocked down?
Remember?
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