Having been able to visit Guimaras, Estancia, Sicogon, Gigantes, Sipalay, Boracay, Caluya, Hinugtan, there are two dominant factors I consider their similarities. One is that when you reach their famous beaches, the water is surely crystal clear, the ambiance, magnificent. Second, when you cross an Island via pump boats, or ferries, you will notice plastic trash programming your impression back to “if only.” If only they have employees in-charged of water sanitation, which for sure they have! If only people could just not carelessly throw their plastic waste on the water because they are educated enough to have learned that this material takes hundreds of years to decompose. If only they could’ve seen the water creatures and coral little by little degrading and dying because of their stupidity. Hasn’t it been an old story after all?
Last Monday, I crossed Guimaras for an important purpose. I looked at the right and thought of immediately diving into the fresh sea. Then gazed on the left side of the terminal and saw sakto bottles, stryofoam, snacks packaging floating on the corner, “Waste is waste and it gives a “dirty, unattended” taste for such nationally promoted and frequented by tourists island. Heck, where can I find a net? I could’ve just knit catch them, hence they’re too easy peasy to clear anyways, it wouldn’t take 5 minutes to put everything back to normal. So why not even one among those assigned in the coast or the terminal care to stand up and take that simple kiddie challenge?
Last month, we had an overnight stay at Balay Kugon Resort in Sicogon where we charted a private boat. Oh, the resort was truly a paradise because it has been well maintained by the Ayala Corporation. But, before you are able to reach that gem, you have to just try to cover your eyes as if no mess exists. I could say among the municipalities I named , Estancia has the worst port I wouldn’t wish to remember. Not that the port smells dried fish everywhere because we all are aware it’s their primary source of living and I admire their noble livelihood. Rather, the trash floating were just uncontainable and gruesome to imagine! They were mostly non biodegradable and piling all over the docking area. I wonder if their local government unit has even bothered to check on their situation? I could assume that the trash has been there for weeks or months because of the sticky presence of mud or whatever that is that has turned the materials dark. The solutions are plainly logical and basic. Clean and penalize the culprits! Have somebody in the waste and management do job. Do they have DOLE contractual workers or does the port as a market area have maintenance staff the least? How about the coast guard with their reserves initiating clean up drive? But of course, the main people responsible in maintaining the portal to the nation’s tourist attractions Isla Gigantes as such is the provincial and local government units’ heads working together with the Department of Tourism. Not only that we are promoting the natural resources but also we tell our covey our market value by showing how we take care of our environment because the process is so easy if you make it as a habitual function. Too many resolutions and ordinances have been passed I believe but the implementation will always have loopholes without religious supervision. And as for humans? Let the careless animals pay the price of littering either through imprisonment or monetary sanction so that they would learn from their acts and realize not to do the same wherever they land on. Ilonggos, where’s civilization taking place in the era of technology and advancement?
I hope that by the time I visit Panay’s best attractions, the locals as the forefront of tourism have taken a deeper grasp of their vital roles in maintaining the wonders of their welling place, their home. The same as the visitors, would put it in their conscience to be reminded to just leave footprints and bring with them memories when they are given the privilege to visit places they have no rights to harm.
