Capability over Popularity

UP election

Mother cares

(Maternal and Women’s Care at Brgy. Lumanggan)

The millennium development goals in the Philippines aim a zero maternal mortality rate in 2004 and contraceptive prevalence rate of 58% in 1990. The thrust is not to increase prevalence rate but to lay down the available options to married couples.

In a survey conducted to 9 mothers of Brgy. Lumanggan, Miagao, result shows that 66.70% of the respondents gave birth to their children in their home with the aid of “hilot” and midwives; while a total of 33.30% gave birth in the hospital. There were no documented cases of death during the child delivery.

Also, 6 out of 9 respondents (66.70%) had their regular check-up at their health center or hospital, but a total of 3 respondents (33.30%) still believe in “hilot”. This could be attributed to lack of financial resources and as well as the practice of “hilot” at their barangay.

5 out of 9 respondents (55.60%) did not participate in any fora/seminars conducted by the government or any volunteer group. While 4 out of 9 respondents (44.40%) attended the seminar about family planning conducted by volunteer groups of UPV and other institutions.

When it comes to controlling vices during their stage of pregnancy, 100% of the respondents claimed of not indulging themselves into smoking or drinking alcoholic beverages. This is due to the fact that they were made aware of the possible harmful effects to their baby.

The survey shows that majority of the respondents still adhere to traditional matrnal care methods like “hilot”. It also shows that majority of them practice the concept of contraceptive in the form of family planning. This is an indication that the implementation of the millennium development goals have been somehow succesful.

Just a small dot

www.keepbanderabeautiful.org/climate-change.jpg

Climate change is one of the most critical issues in our environment today. This is surely one of the great threats that people around the globe are most likely facing by now. With the increasing temperatures in various regions and increasing extremities in weather patterns, inhabitants of the earth could come up with a consensus that this issue ranks on the top as the major threat of our planet.

Global warming and climate change refer to an increase in average global temperatures. Natural phenomena and human activities are believed to be the contributing factors to an increase in average global temperatures. This is caused primarily by increases in “greenhouse” gases.

The term greenhouse is used in combination with the phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect. The energy from the sun drives the earth’s weather and climate, and heats the earth’s surface. The rise in temperature that the Earth experiences is due to certain gases in the atmosphere (water vapor, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane, etc.) that trap energy from the sun. Without these gases, heat would escape back into space and Earth’s average temperature would be about 60ºF colder.

Many of greenhouse gases are actually life-enabling, for without them, heat would escape back into space and the Earth’s average temperature would be a lot colder. Because of how they warm our world, these gases are referred to as greenhouse gases.

However, if the greenhouse effect becomes stronger, then more heat gets trapped than needed. And this will be the start of the problem. Human activities have caused an imbalance in the natural cycle of the greenhouse effect and related processes. Just take for example sleeping and human health.  An amount of sleep is needed to rejuvenate energy from the body.  More sleep will give a better condition to one’s body. But too much sleeping could also cause harm on the body.

In much the same way, greenhouse gases are essential for our planet; the planet may be able to deal with slightly increased levels of such gases, but too much of it will affect the health of the whole planet.

Climate change is a one big concern that one person alone can surely not handle it. But this will indeed be a small dot if people around the globe will work hand in hand in addressing this problem.

Not all bad things

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Filipinos are having a hard time trusting the Philippine government. Up to the end of term of PGMA, several issues and arguments are still being raised questioning the leadership of the president.

Although there are enumerable downfalls of the Arroyo administration, the extent of which the president has served the country doesn’t just stop there. The administration has accomplished several things in different aspects that the Filipinos should also learn to acknowledge.

There were improvements in tax collections, which strengthened the economic position, and renewed the trust of investors in Philippine economy. With the improved fiscal condition, the government was able to fund priority infrastructure programs and basic services, especially for the poor.  This lead to the decrease on the poverty incidence among Filipino families from 27.5% of 2000 down to 24.7% in 2003.

When it comes to tourism, the visitor arrivals to the Philippines increased from 1.8 million from January to October 2004 to 2.1 million during the same period in 2005. Chinese tourist arrivals registered a significant increase of 157.5% over last year’s 3,742.

Based on the 2005 Labor Force Survey (LFS), the average employment increase reached 699,000. Government intervention in priority programs resulted in a total of 1.99 million jobs generated from January to September 2005.

In terms of education, a total of 8,800 classrooms were built from July 2004 to May 2005, or 47% higher than the annual target of 6,000, while 4,516 classrooms or 75% of the annual target were constructed from June 2005 to October 2005.

The government also expanded access of the poor to half-priced essential medicines by establishing more than 4,000 Botika ng Barangay/Bayan outlets nationwide.

Although Filipinos keep on complaining about the present administration’s governance, one should also try to acknowledge the accomplishment and the good things done by the Arroyo administration.