POTABLE WATER. Cerela Selim (right) of Barangay Rita Glenda, Basilisa, Dinagat Islands, shares the struggle of their community to access potable water and the assistance of government agencies and civic groups. The sharing is part of the Dagyaw Open Government Town Hall Meeting conducted on Thursday (June 29, 2023) in Butuan City. (PNA photo by Alexander Lopez)
(First of 2 parts)
BUTUAN CITY – Dagyaw, or “Bayanihan” in the local dialect, is an open town hall meeting that continues to be a platform for government agencies, and civic and people's organizations to improve trust and confidence in the government through dialogue.
The fifth Dagyaw in Caraga Region this year took place Thursday afternoon in this city, featuring stories of hope and resiliency of the people in island communities who rose against the odds when natural disasters hit their areas.
Led by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Department of Budget and Management, and the Presidential Communications Office, Dagyaw gathered community leaders to recount how their communities managed to hurdle the challenges brought by calamities.
"May this gathering serve its purpose on people engagement and participation and agree together on how to address the identified issues," Assistant Regional Director Donald Seronay, DILG-13 officer-in-charge, said as he welcomed the event's participants.
Two civil society groups also joined the activity, namely the Gawad Kalinga and the Propegemus Foundation Inc.
Water is life
Cerela Selim, president of Purok 9, Barangay Rita Glenda in the town of Basilisa, Dinagat Islands, shared that potable water is the primary concern of her community, which is situated on a hilltop portion of the village some 15 kilometers from the town proper.
“Our water source before was a natural spring, which is situated in the lower portion of our village with a distance of about three kilometers,” said Selim, who also serves as the president of the Panaad Farmers Association.
Residents in her community of more than 200 families, she said, would walk such a distance from their houses just to fetch potable water and hike back to their homes carrying water containers.
“It was a difficult situation for us. Then we decided to develop that water source sometime in 2019, through contributions from every household. We succeeded in our water impounding efforts, but then, the residents still need to walk that distance just to access water for their homes,” Selim said.
In 2020, through their efforts and resources, they managed to procure a water pump and hose and tapped the potable water right towards the center of their community.
“It was a relief seeing the water flow to our community. But it was meant for a few months only. In December 2021, everything was destroyed when super typhoon Odette struck Dinagat Islands,” Selim said.
Aside from their water source, she said houses, their sources of livelihood, and other infrastructures in the community, were ruined by the typhoon. (To be continued) (PNA)
