Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco will lead town officials in the launching of the Department of Education’s (DepEd) "Schools First Initiative" (SFI) today.
SFI is designed to mobilize support for addressing the numerous problems in education. According to the program’s proponents, quality education is not only the obligation of teachers and employees of the DepEd but of the whole community.
Tiangco has ordered the Public Information Office (PIO) and the Barangay Operations Center (BOC) to coordinate with the town’s eight public high schools and 15 elementary schools for the success of the program. Also included in the program were Navotas’ three private schools.
The mayor also cited a major improvement in the flood situation in the town, particularly in areas where most schools are located.
He announced earlier that the areas around Navotas High School, Bagumbayan Elementary School, Bangkulasi Elementary School and Tanza Elementary School, particularly along M. Naval Street, are now flood-free due to the intervention of the local government.
Tiangco has initiated the construction of riverine walls and pumping stations, among other measures, to address the perennial flooding in the area. The mayor said the people of Navotas cannot wait for the much ballyhooed Camanava Megaflood Control Project of the government to be completed. The P.5 billion project, which has seen a number of groundbreaking rites, is currently bogged down by general government ineptness.
The project has also been held back temporarily after expert marine geologist criticized the project’s design as generally flawed and thus poses great danger to life and property, if left unchecked, in the areas it is supposed to save and protect lives.