Gemma Cruz Araneta By Gemma Cruz Araneta   My friends and I, residents of Salcedo Village which pertains to Barangay Bel-Air in Makati, make it a point to attend the assemblies organized by our perennial barangay captain and council, that is, when and if we hear about it on time.  We seem to be prisoners of geography because Bel-Air Village with its grand barangay hall is not contiguous to Salcedo Village. We are separated by unbridgeable Buendia, impassable Makati Avenue, and congested Paseo de Roxas. Usually, the notices are dropped, a bit too late, at the lobbies of the condominium towers; or maybe it is our fault because we don’t always read the tarpaulins hooked on a cyclone wire wall of the kerchief-sized Velazquez park. “The squeaky wheel gets the grease” — that American proverb does not work in Barangay Bel-Air.  No matter how squeaky and noisy the Salcedo residents are, our barangay captain remains dismissive and often turns a deaf ear.  The streets of Salcedo Village are littered with cigarette buts and plastic waste. Tell MACEA.  The streets of Salcedo Village are not safe; we have witnessed snatchings. Tell MACEA.  There are colorum SUVs blocking the side streets. Tell MACEA. They’re too many food carts. Tell MACEA. The sidewalks are bumpy. Tell MACEA. If it is not Tell MACEA, it is write to MACEA.  The barangay assembly open forum   sounds like averitable litany to Santo MACEA, whenever we residents of Salcedo Village pray and plead. Fortunately, we found out just in time about MACEA’s yearly general membership meeting which was held at the Manila Polo Club last Tuesday.  Imagine, we could have missed it!  My friends and I attended; the property manager of our condominium corporation came with us but he must have been intimidated by our audacity, he remained mute all morning. I wonder if he would have voiced our complaints, if we ladies were not there. Residents of Barangay San Lorenzo came with their officials so; did dwellers of   Legazpi Village, which is attached to Barangay San Lorenzo, like we are to Barangay Bel-Air.  In the audience was a host of property managers, more vocal than ours, specially the women managers. It is common knowledge that the Legazpi and Salcedo villages are the high-revenue assets of their barangays because these areas contain an enviable density of condominium towers, offices, myriad businesses, and retail outlets.  Eighty percent of the taxes of Barangays San Lorenzo and Bel-Air come from the attached  Legazpi and Salcedo Villages. When the Legazpi Village people heard  our eternal plight and lament about Barangay Bel Air’s indifference, they felt sorry for us. They proudly announced that the Barangay San Lorenzo officials are approachable, compassionate, and available 24/7 to attend to the minutiae of life’s daily problems.  Their barangay officials seldom invoke MACEA with which they have excellent relations.  They bragged about the 11 environmental officers, in the barangay’spayroll, who patrol the streets to enforce non-smoking and anti-littering laws. We begged them to adopt Salcedo Village. After the general meeting was adjourned, some MACEA trustees suggested that we meet right there and then to thresh out our problems with Barangay Bel-Air.  MACEA is the Makati Commercial Estate Association, a private-sector group composed of property owners established by the Ayalas to take care of the Makati Central Business District.  All our complaints about dirty streets, substandard roads and sidewalks, visible and effective security, illegal aliens, etc., were recorded and rapid action promised. I brought to their attention typographical errors in street signs: H V dela Costa should be HV de la Costa. (Dela is 2 words? Yes, sir, de la). We revealed our extreme Plan B, which is for Salcedo Village to declare its independence and form itself into a new barangay. If the city of Manila has more than 800 barangays (some as small as two streets), why can’t we do it? Salcedo Village has more than enough revenue to survive on its own. Two days ago, an abandoned baby was found in Velazquez Park. The CCTV had not been repaired by the barangay so we have no clue. The barangay captain dispatched the infant to the DSWD, but MACEA was not informed. I am sure someone has submitted a report about our complaints during the MACEA meeting, but the barangay captain is busy campaigning for yet another term. ([email protected])