Sand Quarry - Role of Brgy Quezon

Can you see the mounds of sand? These are "legally" quarried from our beloved Lake Mainit!


The issue is now becoming clear.

Sand quarrying is allowed because operators have permits from the Barangay Office of Quezon, from the Municipal Office of Mainit, and even from the Provincial Office of Surigao del Norte.

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Our Bantay Danao, our Barangay Tanods, and Municipal Police are not monitoring to STOP the quarrying! They are ther JUST to ensure that quarrying IS constrained within the PERMITTED sites!!!

I got a response from Barangay Quezon related to my earlier post where I insisted that Quarrying is a Battle We can Win!
With the given reply, I can now sympathize with the barangay government as I understand why the problem still do proliferate. As a barangay, and with tanods armed only with batuta, where most of the operators and quarry workers are either friends of relatives, Quezon cannot fully implement the sand quarrying policies. The barangay officials and policy enforcers also cry for support from the municipal government especially from the police force. They hope that with police authority backing up the tanods, more illegal operators and workers can be apprehended.

With this, the Pidjanga Blog would like to join the call for the municipal government to ensure police presence in the area and implement the quarrying policy. Mayor Ramon and Vice Mayor Banoy... we hope that this issue has reached your respective offices, and that something is being done.

But while I understand the limitations of barangay's capacity, I do not completely agree that they can not do something. If there is political will to protect and conserve our beloved lake, this can be done. They can intensify education campaigns and empower the local community to do the policing themselves. If the tanods lack the weapon, why not the power and pressure of the people do the work.
Make noise about it, let the perpetrators know that you are against them, and show them that you are serious!!!
Again, I enjoin everyone to this cause. Let's conserve and preserve Lake Mainit... let it remain a living lake for our children and grandchildren. Let us be caretakers of this God's beautiful gift... the Philippines' deepest and cleanest lake!

Go and tell... STOP the illegal sand quarrying in our town!

Post: Zimmbodilion (www.pidjanga.blogspot.com)
Feb 16, 2008