NCPAG promotes “green vote”
KIM Quilinguing
To promote environmental issues as a run-up to the forthcoming elections, the UP Samahan Tungo sa Progresibong Administrasyon (UP-STPA) and the UP Diliman National College of Public Administration and Governance (UPD NCPAG) organized on February 3, 2010 the forum “Mga Kandidato ng Kalikasan at Kapaligiran: May Boboto Ba?” at the NCPAG Assembly Hall.
The forum was one of the launching activities of the College’s “Green Vote, Green Growth Movement.” Spearheaded by Prof. Ebinezer Florano, the movement aims to scrutinize the environmental agenda of political groups and candidates. The forum guests included presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas, vice presidential candidate Loren Legarda, senatorial candidate Nereus Acosta, and Roy Cabonegro of Partido Kalikasan ng Pilipinas as speakers.
Legarda spoke of the Philippines’ lack of implementation of its environmental laws. She also talked of the difficulty of mustering enough support for environmental legislation, since her colleagues prefer to focus more on employment, poverty, or national security. Legarda even complained that if not for natural disasters, nobody would have paid attention to her environmental bills.
Cabonegro, secretary general of Partido Kalikasan ng Pilipinas, urged government to shift from its neo-liberal policies on the environment toward a policy which would involve local communities and local government. Cabonegro favored a 25-year ban on commercial logging and a moratorium on mining by foreign firms.
For his part, Acosta said that one reason for the lack of implementation of environmental laws is the government’s inability to define protected areas. Acosta also wanted to disprove the notion that environmental protection runs counter to business.
Perlas, however, warned the audience of an environmental crisis. He cited Acosta’s presentation which showed the rise in sea levels in the next 20 to 25 years and the extreme typhoons and droughts. Perlas emphasized the need for re-structuring population centers to better equip them to respond to disasters. He insisted that “green issues” should be viewed as life-or-death questions.
Professor Leonor Briones of NCPAG called for “climate sensitive agendas” and policies that will develop citizens to be environmental conservationists. She also questioned the current practice of relegating the handling of calamity funds to the Office of the President, instead of to units and organizations directly involved in climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction.
Source: http://www.up.edu.ph/upnewsletter.php?issue=63&i=1138
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