By Chito Chavez
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has asked 1,129 barangay officials to provide justifiable reasons for their non-compliance on a directive compelling them to participate in the Manila Bay clean-up.
DILG Undersecretary Martin Diño
(Facebook page / MANILA BULLETIN)
DILG Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Martin Diño said the department has already issued show-cause orders to the concerned barangay officials.
Diño emphasized that the officials should explain why they should not be held liable before the Office of the Ombudsman for their failure to participate in the clean-up drive.
In the event the barangay officials offer what shall be evaluated as flimsy reasons, Diño said the DILG will have ‘no other choice’’ but to elevate and file cases against them.
He said on Wednesday the officials are from barangays in Bulacan, Bataan and Pampanga in Central Luzon, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite in Region 4-A and Metro Manila.
Diño said “defiant barangay officials’’ could face charges for not implementing provisions of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act in their respective areas.
Diño alleged that some negligent barangay officials pocket the funds for waste management and garbage collection to enrich themselves.
Because of this, Diño said efforts and measures to reduce garbage such as recycling and segregation remain ineffective.
The DILG had ordered officials in 5,700 barangays in and near Metro Manila to clean coastal areas or inland water systems every week and document the activity.
Manila Bay's clean-up was started on January 27, 2019 three months after the world-famous Boracay Island was opened after its six-month closure for rehabilitation.