Up to “300 questions” will be asked of Taguig City residents in the next few weeks to find out one basic thing: What do they need?
Mayor Lani Cayetano has ordered the full implementation of the Taguig City Integrated Survey System, which is designed to collect data such as the residents’ demographic makeup, income sources and health conditions.
Survey takers soon will soon go house to house in the city of 600,000 to determine, for example, the different types of ailments, diseases, or disabilities prevalent in Taguig or the specific needs of its senior citizens.
The survey promises to be thorough with 300 questions divided into three parts.
“With this new survey system, I am hopeful that our delivery of basic services to Taguig residents will greatly improve,” Cayetano said in a statement.
The city government reported that measures based on data collected via an earlier survey in November 2010 had already yielded results, such as the distribution of two weeks’ worth of medicines to low-income residents.
Other programs that benefited from the initial survey include the city government’s scholarship program; its medicine distribution program for asthma, hypertension, and diabetes sufferers; as well as its distribution of wheelchairs, crutches and walking canes for the handicapped.
“During the initial stage of implementation, we were able to obtain accurate information relevant in delivering services to Taguigeños. The program also served as a guide toward the efficient and effective management of the city’s resources,” Cayetano said.
“Since the survey covers all the households in the city, the information gives us a true graphical picture of the status of the constituents,” city government spokesperson Darwin Icay said.
The incoming data would also correct inaccuracies in past city surveys, the official added.
Data from a 2007 census conducted by the National Statistics Office showed that Taguig then had a total population of 613,343 composing 136,942 households. Nathaniel R. Melican