Significant activities for the welfare of citizens

DISCIPLINARY measures concerning laws and rules in the main public roads and thoroughfares are implemented to end the usual problems seen daily.

Heavy traffic and accidents on the road are solved with the law on speed limits of vehicles at 40 mph. All passing vehicles' speed is measured by an electronic detector. All offenders are apprehended with a fine ticket issued to the owner to be settled by the driver with the traffic officer. Road rage fatal incidents are diminished.

Lanes for each type of vehicles, buses, jeepneys, motorcycles, and bicycles are designated. For the pedestrians the rules on no jaywalking, no littering, no smoking, no parking on the sides of the road. To prevent parking on designated places there is a planned rule to have future car owners sign a paper that he has a garage in his residence. No ambulant vendors and makeshift stores on the roadsides and the pedestrian lanes are permitted. The stores are demolished time and again. No tricycles or pedicabs are permitted in the main roads. One unusual traffic law was enforced prohibiting cattle as cows and carabaos to walk on the main roads. As I was writing this there was one cow on the road caught by the traffic officer and impounded with fines for several offenses as disturbing main traffic, towing and caring while in captivity. No owner had claimed the cow. Two other cows escaped. I found this amusing but it must be solved.

Demolition of communities in slums, squatter residents on privately owned lots, or need of government for spaces is a common sight time and again. Resistance from the affected people with all sorts of tactics fighting with the official demolition officers are so disturbing anyway you see it. This has to end. I am glad the city council has passed the proposal to allow the National Housing Authority (NHA) to construct an additional P10million worth of socialized housing at the relocation site or resettlement area in Los Amigos, Tugbok. The fund will be spent to construct the first 100 housing units to be done in two stages. The P5 million will be given to the city government by NHA through the agency's Ressettelment Assistance Program Funds. The housing units will be the duplex type. Each house is worth 100,000 pesos for materials and 30,000 for labor.

On the Lingap Application, the LGUs will simplify this by having the offices in one building for DSWD, Phil Health, Phil. Charity Sweepstakes, and PAGCOR. Patients, usually the elderly, disabled patients, are no longer lining up under the heat of the sun just to get assistance. Another agency extending another help is the Public Safety and Security Command Center will help the Barangays, if needed. The city will provide around 6,000 pesos per month for this.

My last item may be a surprise for you readers but I cannot miss this opportunity to warn parents and the community at large about the children's exposure to the digital media like tablets, smart phones, usage of ear phones, and other electronic devices which emit electro - magnetic waves. In the long run these devices may affect rest and sleeping habits of children. Children at two years are already using these. They know more of these than their parents. They develop the socializing potential of children but is very detrimental when they become addicted to this. According to some doctors concerned with this the children may have migraines, defective eyesight, headache, abdominal pains. Sedentary lifestyles lead to about 75% of the cases of obesity of children. Some sleep with their gadgets beside them. Studies are in progress to determine the damaging effect of this habit. Facebook users are doing this habitually. They deprive themselves of family interaction when even parents are busy with their own gadgets while eating. Studies are being made to determine whether students can use their electronic gadgets including computers in the classroom. This is a problem. I have this in mind as an educator. It is imperative that limits must be set when, where, and how to use the gadgets without interfering with the proper mind development of children to think, organize, and conclude to successfully learn and be educated. As a citizen what can you say about them? For comments text cp. no. 09202112534c