MMDA nearly done with Marikina cleanup

MANILA, Philippines - The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority is 80 percent finished with its clearing and cleanup operation in Marikina and will shift its attention to Taguig and Pasig City anytime this week, MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando said yesterday.

“We will start in areas that has already dried up. There are still some parts of Taguig and Pasig that are still flooded,” he said.

Fernando said Filipinos have a “hoarding complex” since they are fond of keeping items with “sentimental value,” but “some of these sentimental items were among those wet during the floodings and they were translated into garbage. We have been hauling one truckload of garbage per household in areas affected by floods in Marikina.”

Fernando said garbage haulers in Marikina are sometimes delayed by the lack of discipline among the flood victims.

“I think what we need right now is self-discipline. Many of the victims of typhoon Ondoy refused to remove their stalled vehicles. We must stop thinking of ourselves for awhile. We are still lucky that we only lost a portion of our properties. Look at others who lost their relatives during the fury of Ondoy,” he said.

Fernando said one of the best lessons they learned from Ondoy is that “no man is an island.”

“We thought that Marikina was ready for calamities because we have stockpiles of rice, food and equipment. But during the flood, our equipment were submerged and we lost our food stocks. We realized that we also need our neighboring cities and municipalities,” Fernando, a former Marikina mayor, said.

Fernando said the MMDA will also help in cleaning up Marikina’s Provident Village, which was among those seriously affected by the flood. – Jose Rodel Clapano