Muntinlupa Mayor Ruffy Biazon lamented the low return rate of LED wristbands worn by attendees at Coldplay’s concert in the Philippines, saying this was about the country's integrity.
Coldplay held their “Music of the Spheres” world tour in the Philippines on Jan. 19 and 20 at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
Coldplay at the Philippine Arena (Photos from Coldplay on X)
The wristband recycling leaderboard shows Manila has a low return rate of 87 percent (Screenshots from WheninManila's video on Facebook)
Muntinlupa Mayor Ruffy Biazon (right) and his wife Trina at the Coldplay concert on Jan. 19 at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan (Photo from Trina Biazon on Facebook)
As part of sustainability program, Coldplay distributes reusable LED wristbands to concert goers.
“The reusable LED wristbands worn by the audience as part of the show are made from 100% compostable, plant-based materials. We have reduced wristband production by 80% through collecting, sterilizing and recharging them after every show,” according to the Coldplay tour website.
At every concert, Coldplay posts the leaderboard of cities on the return rate of the LED wristbands.
At the Coldplay concert in Bulacan, it was announced that Manila had the lowest LED wristband return rate among four cities. Tokyo, Japan had 97 percent, Copenhagen in Denmark had 96 percent, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia had 90 percent and Manila, Philippines had 87 percent, the lowest.
Biazon and his wife watched the Coldplay concert on the first day. He said the low return rate of attendees in the Philippines was about integrity.
“The instruction to the people was that it should be returned because it’s going to be recycled. It’s going to be used again. They have the advocacy of protecting the environment. Portion of the ticket goes to ocean conservation, renewable energy, waste management. They have global citizenship,” said Biazon during the flag raising ceremony at the Muntinlupa City hall on Jan. 22.
“What does it speak of about us as a nation?” asked Biazon on the low return rate in the Philippines.
He added, “What is the lesson here? The lesson here is about integrity. As they say, integrity is something that you do when no one is looking.”
In connection with this, Biazon called on Muntinlupa residents not to be the 87 percent in all things that they do.
“Typically, sad to say, we have countrymen that the first thing in their minds is how to circumvent a rule. Instead of following what are the rules, what are the procedures. How do we follow rules and procedures?” he said
He added, “When I saw the numbers that were shown, the sad situation, we as a nation, we seem to be lacking in that area. I hope here in Muntinlupa, not just in the city government but the entire city, can learn how to live with integrity even in little things.”
“We are not perfect but we have to have a conscious effort to fix it. That’s what we are calling for,” said Biazon.