Product of struggle
THERE are a number of ways to view the Court of Appeals’ (CA) decision to issue a writ of kalikasan and order the permanent closure of the reopened Inayawan dump site. One is to consider this in the context of action. The lesson there is that it pays to do something rather than to just complain. What City Councilor Joel Garganera did has paid dividends for everybody.
The reopening of the dump site, which was closed by former mayor Michael Rama in January last year, was among the first acts of Mayor Tomas Osmeña and his wife Margot, who was acting mayor when the Office of the President suspended Rama after the May elections, when they took over control of Cebu City Hall. The move made the dump site smell bad again.
The move was wrong because the dump site has outlived its usefulness and its operation has become a threat to the health of the people in the area and to the environment. But what Osmeña wants he gets, people’s complaints be damned. And he found ways to weaken the resolve of officials of concerned agencies like the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Department of Health (DOH), which wants the dump site closed.
Until Garganera petitioned the CA to issue a writ of kalikasan to stop the operation of the Inayawan dump site, many people were reduced to verbally cursing the mayor and gritting their teeth as a sign of resignation. And even as Garganera seemed to have gained ground in his court action, many were still pessimistic about its outcome. Can the CA justices stand up to Osmeña?
This always happens when one petitions the government for redress of grievances. There are those who downplay its importance and even deride it. Others sit on the fence or stand a safe distance away even if they see the righteousness of the cause. Only a few are bold enough to act with resolve despite the difficulties encountered.But everybody benefits when the action succeeds.
The point is, the democratic space and many of the rights that we now have are products of struggle and determined action. Erroneous government policies get corrected because some people are brave and daring enough to protest these. Instead of criticizing protesters and opposers, people should support them for acting on their behalf.