CEBU, Philippines - Six months to Christmas, the city government has issued a total of 7,000 citation tickets to mendicants but Vice Mayor Edgar Labella admits enforcing the anti-mendicancy law does not come easy especially with the Filipino’s inherent trait of being giving.
“Considering sa atong Christian values, this is a legislative intervention that is very difficult to implement kay mangiluy-on man kaayo ta, so kung naay mangayo manghatag ta,” he said.
The citation tickets were issued from January to June this year.
Labella said, however, that there is no excuse to tolerating mendicancy in the city’s streets.
This is the reason why the city government proclaimed August as Anti-Mendicancy Month purposely to remind the public that the fight against mendicancy is ongoing.
Yesterday, Labella urged barangay officials to be at the helm of enforcement and they can begin by ensuring that carolers are prohibited from doing so in public utility jeepneys.
Labella said the city cannot rely on policemen alone because they, too, have a very limited number.
“So we have to striclty implement the anti-mendicancy especially kaning mga dagko og lawas. Usahay kanang magpa-pretend nga naay physical disability,” he said.
“I hope kining atong anti-mendicacy launching karon will highlight the awareness of our people nga begging is not a good practice labi pa sa kadalanan,” Labella added. —/JMO (FREEMAN)