Members of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) headed by San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora went to Los Angeles (LA), USA to learn its best practices on emergency response as well as its efforts and initiatives in maintaining peace and order in the city of around 4 million residents that could be adopted in the National Capital Region (NCR).
(Photos from Mayor Francis Zamora)
Zamora said the delegates, composed of mayors in Metro Manila, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Romando Artes, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Sec. Benhur Abalos, and other officials from the national and local government first met with Consul General Edgar Badajos of the Philippine Consulate in LA.
"We then proceeded to LA City Hall wherein we were received by two deputy mayors and other key officials and were given a briefing of their governance procedures and a tour of their various offices. We then witnessed a presentation of next generation emergency systems used in the United States," Zamora said.
The following day, the MMC visited the LA Emergency Operations Center and then proceeded to the LA Fire Department (LAFD) wherein they were welcomed and briefed by LAFD Fire Chief Kristin Crowley on the fire department's various vehicles, equipment, and command center.
(Photo from Mayor Francis Zamora)
Crowley said almost 80 percent of the LAFD's responses are medical related as she underscored the importance of establishing a strong communications network between the different frontliners in the city to enhance their response times and ensure the safety of LA citizens.
Zamora and the delegates also met with the Filipino-American community in Los Angeles (FACLA) for dinner and fellowship.
They also visited the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) where they learned about their best practices in maintaining peace and order in the city wherein its residents are composed of very diverse nationalities. The LAPD's deputy chief is a Filipino from Aklan.
(Photos from Mayor Francis Zamora)
"We also studied their 911 emergency response system and ended the day visiting our Filipino community at the Pilipino Workers Center which takes care of our kababayans working in the US," Zamora explained.
The Netherlands experience
The MMC's LA trip is not its first overseas benchmarking activity held under Zamora's leadership.
In April of last year, the council went to The Netherlands to learn about its best practices on sustainability and environmental protection.
They met with Dutch officials and private entities spearheading sustainability programs and climate change-conscious initiatives as part of the MMC's efforts to implement these in the Philippines.
After meeting with the Philippine Embassy in The Netherlands Ambassador Ed Malaya, the group also visited the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) in Rotterdam which is an international organization working as a solutions broker by engaging in innovative solutions to drive adaptation at scale, high-level policy development, new research contributions, advocacy, communications, and work with partners to deliver action on the ground.
Zamora said that the GCA taught the council its best practices in sustainable development and were also given a tour of its famous floating office with its environment-friendly characteristics.
The delegation also met with Rotterdam City Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb who had been given numerous commendations for his leadership skills and sustainability programs.
Aboutaleb and other city officials shared with the council members how they were able to live with water through the construction of dikes and dams which prevent their city and other areas from being submerged in water given that a huge percentage of the Netherlands is below sea level.
The council members also went to AEB Amsterdam which is considered as the largest waste-to-energy single location plant in the world. It provides waste management services such as processing of residual waste, extracting valuable materials, and incineration.
They also visited the head office of Royal HaskoningDHV which develops sustainable water energy and partners with industries, advising, engineering and implementing smart solutions to reduce, reuse and recycle water, and recover resources and replenish water ecosystems. The group is also responsible for the construction of major dams and dikes in the Netherlands which protect their people from flooding.
Zamora also visited Amsterdam's underwater bike parking facility which is built underneath a huge canal.
The mayor noted that the facility can accommodate close to 11,000 bikes which are strictly monitored to ensure their safety. This facility is also directly accessible to train stations which makes transportation more convenient for the Dutch people.