Dirt and Pong
It has been particularly dirty and stinky in Manila this week. It’s turned hot and muggy again too which is probably why there is so much pollution hanging around. There is a family who lives at the vacant car park on the way that I walk to the LRT station. They are pretty new residents there and have taken to burning their rubbish in the morning. It’s pretty common here for families to burn rubbish on the streets – plastic and all. But the main cause of the pollution is probably the traffic – mainly the public transportation that spews huge amounts of fumes along the streets. The buses here are all hand-me-downs from Japan and Korea. You can still see the foreign characters on the sides of the buses and most of them probably haven’t been serviced since they were replaced with newer, cleaner, more fuel efficient buses and dumped here in the Philippines.The main vehicles that clog the streets however, are jeepneys. Modeled on ex-US military vehicles used in the Philippines throughout World War II, jeepneys are everywhere in Manila and serve as a popular mode of public transport. They are loud (I’m pretty sure they don’t they use mufflers), and spew out the worst fumes. People walk with handkerchiefs along many of the main thoroughfares – you can see the grit hanging in the air (remember everything here is still diesel) and you see it when you wipe your face – nice! Jeepneys have set routes and are pretty cheap to ride (7.50 pesos – about 20 Aussie cents). You can get on and off anywhere along their route which makes them very effective at bringing traffic to a standstill. Often they are the only vehicles on the road, and yesterday morning I noticed how many of them were either half full, or driving around with no passengers whatsoever. There definitely seems to be a saturation of jeepneys around the place but for many people, driving a jeepney, taxi, or tricycle is their only source of livelihood here.
This is a jeepney - in Manila you are no longer allowed to ride on the top.
Just as scary as the damage I know is being done to my lungs by living here, is the dirty, stinky politics being played out. After last week’s rumours that a martial law-type proclamation was being drafted (think Marcos), this week GMA (Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) has issued EO (Executive Order) 464. A bit of context – the Hello Garci tapes hit the news earlier this year – they were tapped phone calls ‘allegedly’ between GMA and the Electoral Commission Chief in Mindanao – Garcilliano – discussing how GMA was assured to win by at least 1 million votes in the upcoming Presidential election (held in 2004). Mr ‘Garci’ has literally disappeared from the country and GMA’s public apology and effective killing of impeachment attempts in Congress have dominated news in recent months. But nothing really seems to be happening. Her political support is still strong enough for her to keep her job, and she’s definitely weathering the political storm well.
Anyway, the Senate Committee is running some investigation on what went on – EO 464 bans all administrators (public servants) and military officials from testifying in the Senate and House hearings without her permission. Yesterday a Marine General and his Deputy were called before a Senate inquiry. They testified and were subsequently sacked for disobeying EO 464. They also now face court marshal hearings. It’s pretty big news because the military has presented a unified supportive stance on Maam President. The EO basically gags all witnesses from testifying and essentially shuts down the Senate Enquiry that has been producing pretty damning evidence. Dirty indeed.
A view from our appartment - Manila on a less polluted day. The pollution at least makes for nice sunsets! In the picture you can see the LRT train that I ride to and from work every day.
posted by batik billy @ 6:31 pm
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