‘Barangays should help clean river, boulevard’

CAGAYAN de Oro City’s barangays whose shores are covered by the Kagay-an River should contribute their share to City Hall in keeping it clean, an administration official said on Wednesday.

“They should help clean and do their part, even plant (mangroves)…there is a Cagayan de Oro River Basin Management Council and we’ll try to call for a meeting with them through (City Local Environment Natural Resources Office) to discuss ways to clean and develop the river. This river is the biggest and cleanest river in Misamis Oriental,” Councilor Roger Abaday said.

During the program ‘Ang Inyong Konseho Karon’ hosted by the City Information Office, Abaday — who chairs the 20th City Council’s environment committee — reiterated that the barangays whose shores line up the Kagay-an River should play their part in keeping it clean.

“These include areas from the upland down to Barangays Bonbon and Bayabas heading to Lapasan and Macabalan and Puntod,” he said.

While saying that City Hall has plans to develop the river, Abaday said it’s the barangays that serve as frontliners in cleaning their communities.

“The national government and City Hall (has the resources) but as a former barangay captain (of Kauswagan), I know that barangay officials take the lead (in addressing the concerns of their constituents such as sanitation),” Abaday said.

Abaday cited as an example the national government’s ongoing efforts to clean up the Pasig River in collaboration with the local governments.

“Maybe we can replicate their efforts (with the Cagayan de Oro River),” he said.

With the completion of Phase II of the Flood Risk Management Project for the Cagayan de Oro River project, Abaday said the barangays should do their part to sustain it.

“Even if there is the dike we shouldn’t be complacent and just (depend on City Hall and the national government to do all the work in sustaining it). I already heard reports of someone trying to vandalize (the just-opened Rio de Oro Boulevard) and this is where our barangay officials should do their part to keep it clean (from vandals),” Abaday said.

The Rio de Oro Boulevard forms part of the FRMP-CDOR’s second phase. The technical group of the Rio de Oro Boulevard recently met with barangay officials and the Department of Public Works & Highways-Unified Project Management Office-Flood Control Management Cluster to discuss ways to maintain sanitation in the area. (Stephen Capillas of City Information Office)