Last Sunday was Pasigarbo sa Sugbo; unfortunately I didn’t get to see it because traffic along Escario Street was already blocked. Honestly, I didn’t even know that it was held at the Cebu City Sports Center. At this point allow me to congratulate the grand champion of Pasigarbo sa Sugbo 2019, the Kabkaban Festival of Carcar City, who also won Best in Costume, Best in Street Dancing, and Best in Jingle.
With this victory by Carcar, I can only congratulate Val San Diego for he is truly a man who knows the lively character of the Cebuanos. Congrats also to comeback Governor Gwen Garcia for holding the Pasigarbo sa Sugbo so early in her governorship. I wrongly expected that the holding of the Pasigarbo sa Sugbo would happen next year, not two months after Gwen returned to the Provincial Capitol. Of course the towns that participated in the previous Pasigarbo festival were eager to resume their various presentations, which is why I salute you, Governor Gwen!
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Since it has been raining for most of the week, I can sense that many Cebuanos who called upon the government for water seem to have been satisfied with the abundant water supply from heaven. But let us tell our readers the honest reality that we are seriously challenged today. The rainwater that falls into the ground is no longer being caught by areas that used to catch rainwater and bring it down to the aquifer. Again, I would like to emphasize that my old golf course, the 50-hectare Club Filipino, Inc. has become the Cebu Business Park, a concrete jungle.
Then we no longer have the huge expanse of the old Lahug Airport, which was an area that truly caught the raging waters from Nivel Hills, and takes it down into the aquifer. Today the old Lahug Airport is now the concrete jungle called the IT Park. So where does the water from Nivel Hills go since IT Park can no longer catch it due to the fact that it is already covered with cemented roads? It goes all the way to Mabolo and settles around SM City Cebu, which is why it floods around there so easily.
Only the Cebu Country Club (CCC) remains a pleasant green area surrounded by a concrete jungle. But Cebu City taxes CCC rather than give it an incentive to keep the golf course intact. I’ll have you know that one time, some members wanted the club to move out of its present site because if we sell it on a per square-meter basis, we can easily build a brand-new and modern golfing facility. But that would mean that we would lose an important area for rainwater to seep into the aquifer.
I’m sure that environmentalists don’t want this to happen to Cebu City. This is why we Cebuanos, especially the Cebu media, should be united in pushing for a Mananga River Dam project so that the water needs of Metro Cebu can be addressed, which is why we are asking the 18th Congress through Mega Cebu to give us the funds on this project as soon as possible!
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I fully support the resolution issued by Councilor David Tumulak to the Cebu City Council for Cebu City residents not to use the streets for wakes, prayer meetings, private parties, and the like, which only worsens our traffic problems in Cebu City. Let me add my ten cents worth to Councilor Tumulak, this should include funeral corteges by mourners who walk to the cemetery because they are a major cause of our traffic congestion. It is high time that we warn all barangay officials to inform City Hall that a person has died and would be buried on a particular day so that Mayor Edgar Labella can let them use one or two of our Kaohsiung Buses so that the funeral cortege will no longer cause heavy traffic like they used to.
Mind you, the old traditions we used to have during funerals like the “palina” we get after the burial is no longer practiced. With traffic already a problem, then our city residents must learn to face today’s reality that walking behind the funeral car is no longer a responsible act. Mind you, I already talked with Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma about having those small chapels transferred to areas that do not cause traffic and he agreed with my proposal.