CONGRATULATIONS to Third District Councilor Petite Principe for the realization of her project that addresses the needs of children with unusual kinds of disabilities. In a recent unexpected meeting, Councilor Principe told us that the building housing the center for such kind of children in Davao City is now operational, and most equipment needed to help in addressing their needs has already been acquired and installed. In fact, according to the lawyer-lady councilor, a good number of children are already served by the center. The problem, though, is that the facility still lacks the manpower with the appropriate skills to handle the tasks required in responding to these kinds of children’s needs. When we brought the idea to her to work on the possibility of the City Council providing additional regular positions to be filled with professionals who can carry on the required service at the center, the local lawmaker sadly admitted that the professionals who have the skills are not willing to apply. When asked why, she said that, based on existing salary ranges, the pay for new entrants is much lower compared to that of other private employers requiring professional skills. If such is the case, the city may have to resort to conducting training for those interested so that the Principe project will not go down the drain. Yes, without personnel equipped with the needed skills to handle the mentally-impaired children, the center is likely to end up like many of the country’s barangay health centers and some district hospitals. Many of the said health centers and district hospitals are just structures, not manned by doctors, nurses, or even midwives, and even if there are visiting health professionals, the centers do not have medicines for villagers found with illnesses after consultations. The Philippine Health Insurance System or PhilHealth has reportedly achieved a 100.82 percent coverage of Davao City’s population with health insurance, but many residents in the highlands still complain that bringing their patients to hospitals is hardly an option, due to lack of money or knowledge of where to seek assistance. This raises questions about the effectiveness of the program and the agency’s information dissemination efforts. Furthermore, the city’s problem with illegal and prohibited drugs distribution, as well as cigarette smuggling, persists, with a recent confiscation of smuggled cigarettes worth P14.6 million in Barangay Dumoy, Talomo district. This surge in smuggling activities deserves Mayor Baste Duterte’s special attention.
