KAWIT, Cavite (PIA) – Interior Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos, Jr. on Feb. 24, led the Kalinisan at Inisyatiba para sa Malinis ng Bayan (Kalinisan) program conducted in Barangay Samala-Marquez in Kawit, Cavite.
Local officials led by Mayor Angelo Emilio G. Aguinaldo and other stakeholders, including volunteers, joined in cleaning the esteros within their respective communities.
In his message, Abalos urged every member of the community to be a partner of the government in cleaning and conserving the environment. He also encouraged the local government units to invest in programs, projects, and activities related to solid waste management and other ecological tactics.
Abalos added that the Kalinisan program was conceptualized by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in support of the Bagong Pilipinas brand of governance.
“It’s a matter of attitude. Today, [we will clean] even the smallest parts of our barangay, most especially the esteros. We must teach this to our children. This is what the President aspires for Bagong Pilipinas.”
Abalos also highlighted the significance of holding the Kalinisan program in Cavite, as the province is the top producer of waste in the Calabarzon region.
“The top producers of waste in the country, at 3.6 million tons of waste, are two regions: the NCR, or National Capital Region, and the Calabarzon region. In Calabarzon, the number one is Cavite. Cavite produces around one million tons of waste,” the secretary said.
He added, “Nationwide, 2.7 millions tons of waste are plastic materials. Among these, 20 percent end up in our oceans and do not decay, which destroys our environment. [Kawit] is near our coastline, so we should avoid it.”
According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the waste that is produced every year is beyond the capacity of the Philippines. In 2022, according to the NSWMC, generated waste reached 22 million tons nationwide. Almost all of the waste that is produced every day is household or residual waste.
Under the Kalinisan program, the DILG will implement the Barangay at Kalinisan Day (Barkada) program. Every week, each barangay, in partnership with the private sector and youth volunteers, will join hands to clean their respective houses and promote “segregation-at-source policies.”
Abalos aspires that the cleanliness of each community will be ingrained in every Filipino’s mind with the help of the program.
“We should make it a practice. It’s a way of attitude. That is the message of our pPresident. A clean person has a clean house, a clean community, and a clean nation. That is the Bagong Pilipinas.” (RF,CH/PIA-Cavite)
