Penaflorida said the activities will highlight the use of 5 Rs - refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle, as well as avoid single use of plastics as an efficient strategy for managing waste.

Another waste management strategy, according to Penaflorida, that will be given focus is the 4Bs which stands for “basura isulod sa Basurahan, Bag, Bulsa kag Botelya (to put garbage inside the Bin, Bag, Pocket or Bottles)  intended to prevent and reduce garbage being thrown everywhere and polluting waterways.

The provincial celebration kicked off on January 8 with the provincewide Limpyo Iloilo, a clean-up drive, participated in by all the municipalities and the city of Passi.

“This is the second part of our convergence clean up as our local government units also joined the Kalinisan sa Bagong Pilipinas program which was launched by the Department of the Interior and Local Government simultaneously nationwide on January 6,” said Penaflorida.

At the Capitol grounds, Governor Arthur Defensor led provincial government officials and employees in a Trash Walk activity which collected a total of 27.55 kilograms of waste, mostly PET bottles, bottle caps, plastic food wrappers, plastic cups, straws, and cigarette butts.

For the remaining Wednesdays of the month, Penaflorida is inviting government employees to join them for the Linis Galaw activity featuring Zumba exercises and an exchange of recyclable materials for tokens and incentives.

Other activities include Barangay Kapitolyo Waste Analysis and Characterization Study (WACS) on January 16 and 18; IEC and Tapon to Ipon Caravan on Jan. 22 to 26; Zero Waste Forum on Jan. 30; and launching and inauguration of Barangay Kapitolyo Eco-SWM Center.

On January 27, during the Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan, Penaflorida said PENRO teams will be deployed in the different judging areas to see to it that proper waste segregation is observed.

“We are encouraging everyone not to carelessly throw their trash, we want to see the event end with no litter scattered in the judging areas,” said Penaflorida.

For the first time, the provincial government will host the Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan, one of the highlights of Dinagyang Festival 2024, where 9 municipalities will showcase their festivals in the different judging areas of the competition. 

Tune in to the PIA Kapihan Regionwide radio program over Radyo Pilipinas every Saturday at 4:00 PM.(AAL/LAF/PIA6-Iloilo)