The police must enforce our anti-noise laws!

Last July 3, we wrote a fully column entitled “Make a Lasting Impact: Enforce Small Laws” which really caught the eye of Mayor Michael Rama who rang me up saying that he believed in this idea as he already read about the so-called “Broken Window” theory that was applied in New York City starting with the graffiti on subway trains, which soon disappeared because of this program. Mayor Rama wants this implemented here in Cebu.

However, a program like this needs a determined Philippine National Police (PNP) that should enforce all laws, big and small. This is why we asked if the PNP cannot enforce our laws, then who will? So back again to the question why then can't the PNP enforce these laws? If the smallest of laws are not given the same attention as those big laws, it is for this reason why there is still no justice in this 3rd world country of ours.

One of the major problems that a large number of Cebuanos suffers nearly every single day are the numerous fiestas happening in each barangay or sitio, the super loud and ear-splitting discorral. Please don't tag me as a spoilsport. Poor people too have the right to enjoy their fiesta, but let me say it loud and clear, they have no right to disturb their neighbors. This is where police action is badly needed. But unfortunately most fiestas have the blessings of the barangay leaders and they have as their guests our city councilors and so, we hear the thump…thump…thump… even if your house is not even near the discorral.

Two weeks ago, our neighbors had their annual fiesta which happens and our whole compound suffered from the excessive noise coming from next door. Fed up with this problem, my sister Adela Kono wrote Mayor Rama a letter of complaint. Allow me to reprint excerpts of this letter, which you can say could very well come from me or my wife.

“I am writing to raise my complaint and concerns in regard to the abuse and violation of Cebu City Ordinance no.309, the Anti-Noise Ordinance, which is holding its annual San Juan Bautista Fiesta… Year after year, my family, my household and I have been annoyed and exasperated by their excessive thumping noise, vibration and the long hours they hold disco music. They even play their disco music in the daytime.

Last night, I had to call the Fuente Police Station around four times as, like in the past years, I developed a headache, earache and palpitations from all the thumping noise…. I'm raising this matter to you as a citizen concerned about other barangays that will be holding discorrals throughout the year. I'm sure that there are many people especially those with heart ailments, as well as babies and children, who are expose to this dangerous kind of noise, but could not do anything about it.

Last night after I requested Fuente PO3 Alan Vallejo to come to the discorral and have the noise and bass toned down, I heard someone on the loudspeaker say in the dialect, “Whoever tries to disrupt the disco will pay for the sound system.” And he went further on to announce that this disco will go on till 7:00am. And yet today, they started having disco sounds at 3:00 pm. Is this not a grave abuse of a privilege? Should not their permit be revoked, if not denied next time?

A few years ago, in the same situation, once the police would come, the sound would come down. But after the police leaves, the noise and vibration comes back on. This tells me that our policemen have intimidated in deal with people in discorrals, which probably explains why they are ineffective at fighting this type of public nuisance.”

As I said, this letter may be written by my sister, but it could very well be me writing it, or many other people living in Metro Cebu City who have been affected by this noise, which is supposedly regulated by our laws. But like what said, our Cebu City Council (mostly from BO-PK) make laws that the police just cannot enforce for a variety of reasons. They get calls from those same city councilors not to apprehend those violators.

Here is the challenge to my good friend PSSupt Mariano Natu-el, Jr. Cebu City Police Director for him to form a team of policemen who would uphold the law no matter what. I've been reading a lot about what Mayor Erap Estrada is doing to Manila's Finest… to shape them up starting with the many absentee policemen in the hope that discipline will be restored to the ranks of the PNP. I can only hope and wish that the PNP here would do the same thing.

If the people in our barangays who openly defy or break our anti-noise laws and do not even respect our policemen who are sent to enforce our laws, then what would happen next? Can we citizens do something ourselves like cut the VECO wires so that we can have our peace and quiet again?

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