EDITORIAL - Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing

That the Philippines ranks second among Asean countries in terms of highly polluted air is not surprising. What is surprising is that it is not ranked number one. Cebu is also second to Manila in air pollution. Also not surprising. It would be surprising if it beat the latter.

Surprising or not, however, the Philippines, and tagging Cebu and other provincial urban centers along with it, is bound to figure prominently in any survey or study of air pollution, whether in Asia or the whole world.

The Philippines is among the most densely populated countries in the world. And the largest chunks of its population are concentrated in the cities. There is no dispersal of human activities such as industries to the countryside where pollution could have been dissipated.

Worse, there is absolutely no coherent or earnest program to address this type of pollution. Oh sure, there are existing laws to that effect. But they are as dead as the doornail that tacks them to some obscure or forgotten bureaucratic corner.

Just listen to this. As soon as the report came out that the Philippines rated so poorly in the air pollution study, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is rushing a program called the "Green Philippine Highways."

That's right. Because of this serious indictment, and in consideration "kuno" of the ASEAN Summit which is scheduled in Cebu this December, the DENR is rushing this program. Jesus Christ. That only proves how temporary, haphazard, and fleeting this program is.

And by the way, why is this country so obsessed with hype? Why can't the government just bury its head and do what it is supposed to do, instead of trying to cook up some catchy phrase with which to label its forgotten responsibilities?

"Green Philippine Highways." Wow. It is as if the more beautiful the name, the better the work that taxpayers can expect from their government. But as had been proven over and over again, the better sounding the name, the more hollow the effort that ensues.