DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/Apr 17) — No mayoral candidates responded to an environmental advocacy survey organized by the non-governmental organization Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (IDIS), which launched the survey’s results Tuesday afternoon. IDIS stated they contacted four of five mayoral candidates: former President Rodrigo Duterte, former Civil Service Commission chair Karlo Nograles, Pastor Rodolfo Cubos, and Joselito Tan, but none replied. For vice-mayoral candidates, only independent Richard Alcebar responded, while Sebastian “Baste” Duterte, Bernard Al-ag, and Oyie Soriano-Barcena did not. In total, one vice-mayoral candidate, two congressional district representative candidates, and 26 city councilor candidates participated. IDIS executive director Mark Peñalver expressed disappointment that most mayoral and vice-mayoral candidates did not respond, leaving voters unaware of their stances on environmental issues. He noted that 29 out of 77 local candidates responded, compared to 11 in 2022. Survey participants were asked about issues such as watershed occupancy, quarry regulation, tourism in conservation areas, waste-to-energy facilities, single-use plastics, the Davao Bus Project, vehicle coding, green building codes, organic farming, aerial spraying bans, renewable energy, local environmental codes, Bantay Bukid/Bantay Tubig programs, SIDC bridge construction, and amendments to the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA). The results showed varying levels of support, opposition, and reservations on these issues. IDIS emphasized the importance of candidates’ environmental stances, urging voters to consider these positions when casting their ballots. IDIS environmental research officer Justin Joshua Pungyan highlighted that respondents were free to interpret their positions on the issues. (Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
