Ian Clemente (middle), assistant chief of the Local Government Monitoring and Evaluation Division of DILG in Region 12, urged the barangays to continue the implementation of "Barangay at Kalinisan Day," or BarKaDa, as a strategy for the conduct of their own weekly cleanup drive pursuant to DILG Memorandum Circular 2023-133. (Photo courtesy of DILG Region 12)
KORONADAL CITY, South Cotabato (PIA) -- The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has prodded all barangays in the Soccsksargen region to hold their own campaign to clean their environment for a healthy community.
This is in accordance with DILG Memorandum Circular 2023-133, or Barangay Kalinisan Day (BarKaDa), under President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s Bagong Pilipinas campaign.
“Barangay at Kalinisan Day is a weekly event celebrated by the community to promote cleanliness and unity within the barangay. It involves various activities aimed at fostering camaraderie and environmental awareness,” Ian Clemente, assistant chief of the Local Government Monitoring and Evaluation Division of DILG in Region 12, explained during the Philippine Information Agency's Performing and Informing online program, which airs every Wednesday on its regional and provincial Facebook pages.
Under DILG Circular, barangays shall declare a day within a week as “barangay clean-up day” through an ordinance or resolution, Clemente added.
Clemente said "BarKaDA" may involve a variety of activities, such as coastal clean-up, dredging of clogged canals, esteros, and other waterways; pruning thick bushes or tree branches; draining of receptacles containing stagnant waters; dismantling all possible breeding places for mosquitoes; community gardening; and an information drive on solid waste management, dengue prevention, and community gardening.
“This aims to maintain and provide a healthy and safe environment for the people; reduce, if not eradicate, waste in various waterways; and contribute to mitigating the impact of flooding,” the official pointed out.
DILG reported that, for the first quarter of 2024, the barangays gathered some 364,787 kilograms of waste in 14,404 clean-up sites in various municipalities and cities across Soccsksargen. (Photo courtesy of DILG Region 12)
The DILG directive also orders the barangays to submit a weekly report as a basis for monitoring the success of their clean-up drives.
According to DILG reports, from January to April 12 of this year, the barangays collected at least 364,787 kilograms of waste from 14,404 clean-up sites in various towns and cities across the region.
Meanwhile, Clemente also urged all residents to get actively involved in cleaning their surroundings and join the barangay's weekly clean-up efforts.
“We invite everyone, especially the youth, to join. This is not only for the government or for us alone, but also for the next generation,” he said.
Clemente said that residents “can inquire at barangay hall or contact barangay officials directly. They can provide details regarding scheduled activities, volunteer opportunities, and other relevant information.”
Earlier, the Department of Health in the Soccsksargen region also called on residents to clean their surroundings regularly to drive away mosquitoes and prevent contracting any vector-borne diseases such as dengue, malaria, yellow fever, and the like, which account "for 700,000 deaths annually" worldwide. (ORVR - PIA Region 12)
