Health needs, waste management top wish list

DISASTER preparedness and mitigation along with waste management, hospital services and livelihood topped the wish list of Cebu City barangays at the end of the five-day citywide consultation at the Cebu Grand Convention Center.

The people’s consultations as Mayor Michael Rama described the activity from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15 drew barangay officials and sectoral representatives, whose inputs would be considered in crafting the city’s 2013 budget.

These sectors include members of the academe, interfaith sectors, transport groups, urban and upland barangays, transgenders, business groups, senior citizens,police, judge, vendors, professionals and urban poor groups.

“When we went to Xiamen China, layo ra ang Cebu City,” said Mayor Michael Rama.

Rama said the goal is to make Cebu City a center for trade, industry and services.

For hospital services, Stella Ygoña, head of the city health department, said there would be a need to add more health centers in the city especially in the upland barangays.

Although waste management is a priority in most of the sectors, the business and commerce sector ranked it next to the sewerage services.

Dionisio Gualiza, chief of the Department of Public Services, said that the city was implementing waste segregation.

He encouraged city residents to practice segregation of their garbage

He also called on barangay officials to cooperate in waste segregation to help control flooding especially in city’s lowland areas.

Ygoña also thanked the sector representatives for their inputs because they jived with the city health office’s concerns and priorities./Correspondent Tweeny Malinao