An insignificant part of ideal governance
Allow me to touch my heart and do a social function. Today, some of my high school classmates of 1967 will hold an emotional homecoming. This will be a first Christmas party for us since we went separate ways in pursuit of our individual dreams. So, for and on behalf of such active bodies like Ester Moring, Norma Estremos, and Estrella del Mar, (these were the names they used in our classes then) who organized this activity, I welcome our classmates from foreign lands and other parts of the country, who have taken effort to rekindle fond memories with aging friends.
Whichever part of the globe our classmates come from, I am certain they want to see our city at par with, if not better, than their chosen domicile. Indeed, Cebu City is among the more livable cities in the world. Even then, there are a good number of things our officialdom need to focus on to make Cebu City ideal for my high school buddies to decide to come home for the remainder of their lives.
The streets. I like to dwell on the condition of our city streets because my classmates must have noticed them as soon as they arrived. To be candid, keeping our city streets world-class may not be the best platform a candidate for mayor may raise. Politicians speak less of making our road network simply because it doesn't sound exciting. Consequently, upgrading avenues may not be the most important project of any city administration. Understandably, our elected leaders have, since their assumption to office, allowed many of our roads to deteriorate.
When I drive my friends around the city, I have to plan my trip and choose what roads to go through. There are just too many streets we Cebuanos are ashamed of because of their disrepair.
But, while avoiding being embarrassed is my initial concern, there is a more fundamental aspect to good road network. My classmates know that bad roads work against our economic well-being. The transport system we have is mostly delayed by dilapidated streets. There is no doubt the explosion in the number of vehicles in our streets is the main cause of the monstrous traffic jams we experience every day, still the terrible road condition we have is also a major contributor to traffic.
This week the city administration announced the establishment of a "discipline zone." For the information of my classmates, this is an experiment of enforcing all regulatory ordinances within the "zone." Street vendors are supposedly prohibited to ply their trade. The sight may be good for my friends. But, our officials must reckon that the streets covered by this experiment are not that clean that we can be proud of. Dust, which otherwise covers the roads, should be swept away by our cleaners or better still sucked by mechanized equipment.
My classmates will be here for a few days. I am certain they are not interested in politics even if their trainings and individual callings have good governance as the core value. They won't care who sits as city officials. Their minds will not be diluted with political motivation. If I may try to fathom their thoughts, I imagine that, to them, a good city government allocates each year a good part of its budget to reengineer the road network and sees to it that all related projects are pursued vigorously. Who knows? When they come back for another class reunion they might be so attracted that they decide to stay here for good.
- Latest
