Ben Contreras THE opening of big malls and condominiums in the city makes it inevitable for water supply to become scarcer, more so when you live at the second floor of a residential house. Unless these huge edifices drill for their own water supply sources, residential homes will suffer the more. Lately, the water supply where I live (second floor) went kaput at an early hour of the morning. Why is that so? I tried to figure it out. The other day, since it was almost noon time, we decided to try the newly opened McDonald’s that’s just a stone’s throw from where I live. I went to the lavatory to clean up and wash my hand. The water was very strong that made me think that indeed, water is life. Our little farm in Libertad depends on rainwater because the water system there has bogged down. Thank God, there’s a new project to drill for water and make a reservoir that would supply the Sitio Bitaugon where we belong. The project is already funded and with a little revision on project plan, it should commence any time in the next few months. Back to McDonald’s, I tried to enjoy the strong water supply it has, wishing that at home the water supply would also be the same. When we got home, there was no water. Maayo pa ang Mcdo, kusog kayo ila tubig. No, I am not complaining. Other places in the city, if you happen to listen to radio broadcasts, have another problem worse than mine: dirty water. The question is, are malls and condominiums getting the priority of water supply? If so, I think it’s unfair for the small consumers. The experience of my former boss who once resided at RER Subdivision taught me to collect and stock water when it’s flowing. That is why we have big containers in each of the wash rooms and the kitchen. Sometimes, we forget and when everyone starts to use water, problem arises. At around 10:30 am, Sunday, my tank was half full, not enough for two people to take a bath. Agwanta sa until the water supply is restored. The city is growing and the consumption goes with it. Has the Cagayan de Oro Water District prepared for it? We heard of a rehabilitation program to improve the supply. But it seems that it can’t cope with the pace of development. What do we do about it? There is a word for in Visayan: Utong na lang sa.
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Once in a while you get news that the city is doing this and that, like implementing the sorting of garbage and ridding the streets around Cogon market of vendors. But if you go around the city, it is still dirty, and Cogon is still Cogon, messy and chaotic. Propaganda won’t work. There are many places in the city that need serious clean-up. You can’t implement change if you are not firm in implementing the law.
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The SM fever has mellowed down. I had my first grocery there a few days ago. Well, it’s like any Save More outlet in the city. The only difference is that, it’s new and relatively clean. But the goods are practically the same. The next time you get caught in a traffic jam, don’t blame SM. We are really back to square one.