Labella wants dwellers out of streets

CONCERNED about the proliferation of street dwellers in the city, Cebu City Acting Mayor Edgardo Labella said he will ask the executive department to reconvene the Cebu City AntiMendicancy Board.

The board takes care of the welfare of street dwellers by doing operations, which will help them go back to their homes instead of taking shelter on the streets.

Labella said he observed for the past weeks that street dwellers are already utilizing the sidewalks and skywalks as their homes. He particularly pointed out areas along Fuente Osmeña, General Maxilom Ave. and Osmeña Blvd., among others.

A makeshift structure was even built on the skywalk near a mall along Osmeña Boulevard.

Most of these street dwellers, he said, are not from the city but have opted to stay because they make money out of begging.

If City Government will not do something about this, Labella said that the government infrastructures will become breeding ground for young people to do illegal acts.

“It looks very bad and unhealthy for the city. It also makes our city dirty,” he said.

During the administration of former Mayor Michael Rama, Labella said the board conducted operations against the night dwellers.

Some of them were sent to their back provinces through the “Balik Probinsya” program of the Department of Social Welfare and Services. At present, Labella said Mayor Tomas Osmeña has yet to convene the board again.

“I urged the executive department through the Anti-Mendicancy Board to look into this. Grabe na ang proliferation of night dwellers who sleep on sidewalks,” he said.

But even without the board yet, the administration of Osmeña, in coordination with the police and non-governmental organizations, have conducted a several rescue operations.

However, these operations only covered street children.