Baguio City gang wars/ Protecting Busol watershed

 CITY HALL BEAT

Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY -- Mayor Benjamin Magalong directed law enforcers to thwart gang-related conflicts threatening to make a comeback in the city.
    Apart from asking the Baguio City Police Office under outgoing police director P Col. Allen Rae Co and the Public Order and Safety Division under division chief Marvin Herrera to adopt measures to prevent another incident of gang war, the mayor also tasked them to involve all concerned parties and sectors in resolving the problem.
    Co said they will set a meeting to include not only the law enforcement and other concerned government agencies but also the academe and the gangs themselves.
    “We have to involve everyone so that we can identify the issues and problems to be resolved as this cannot be addressed by the police alone,” Co said.
    Co said there was no increase in gang war incidents in the city and in fact, those reported were only isolated cases.
    “Based on our observations, this could be a result of lack of parental supervision and because there are no face-to-face classes, they can roam around especially those who are already above 15 years old.  They group together dahil wala naman silang ibang pinagkakaabalahan,” Co said.
    “One of the main players to be able to curb this problem will be the parents themselves.  They have to monitor their children,” he added.
    As of now, both BCPO and POSD intensified their visibility, surveillance and monitoring of areas frequented by said gangs.
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The city government and its citizenry should have a unified stand on the need to protect Busol watershed from incursions and preserve it as one of the few remaining pinestands and primary source of potable water of the city.
    Mayor Magalong said fighting for its preservation would be vote for the next generation facing a future bereft of greenery and potable water due to the perennial threat of squatting.
    He said it is high time to exert all efforts to protect the watershed which has only about 40 percent unoccupied spaces.
    “Kung maubos pa ito paano na tayo.  Kaya protektahan natin at dapat unified and efforts at iisa ang boses natin.  Protect Busol,” he urged.
    The mayor reiterated that the city is bent on pursuing the demolition of the illegal structures in the Baguio side of the forest reserve.
    He said coordination is continuing with the Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) for the identification of illegal structures that need to be demolished.
    “Squatting in watersheds has to stop once and for all, it has to stop,” he stressed.
    He said this is highlighted by the fact that the city is experiencing an unprecedented water shortage.
    “First time natin naranasan matuyuan ang ating water sources at water harvesting facilities.  First time natin maranasan ang napakahinang pressure sa mga sources at sa ating faucets.  Matindi rin ang naging rationing.  It’s about time to protect our watershed dahil tubig ang buhay natin,” he said.
    “We have to act.  We cannot just allow just a few to benefit at the expense of the majority,” he said adding that even economic industries highly depend on water supply in their operation.
    “Industries including our tourism industry which is our main source of income won’t be able to stand if we have no water.      What will happen to our economy if this is the situation,” he said.
    The mayor said they are now waiting for the decision of the court on the stalled demolition operations last March.
    The demolition was implemented after occupants violated conditions of their agreement with the city government that they will cooperate with the city by refraining from introducing improvements or expansion of their existing structures, helping guard against further intrusions and undertaking preservation measures for the watershed.