SNA State of Local Development

Here's more on the depressing economic condition of my hometown. I found a 2009 report on the state of local development in the Municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino. The report was created by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) as part of its local government performance management system (LGPMS). I'll let some of the findings mortify you:

State of Health and Nutrition – Maternal mortality rate is unbearable.

State of Education – Elementary participation rate is intolerable. Elementary completion rate is extremely low. Simple literacy rate is low.

State of Employment – Unemployment rate is alarming. Underemployment rate is very high.

State of Income – Income per capita is extremely low. Poverty incidence is alarming. Magnitude of families living below poverty threshold is too high.

State of Forest Ecosystems – Forest cover in forest land is denuded. Incidence of large-scale illegal logging is high. Forest resources and wildlife habitat are severely at risk.

The report is in summary form and quite easy to read and understand. It has one conclusion, however, that I find difficult to believe. In its "State of Urban Ecosystems," it indicates that, in Senator Ninoy Aquino, "air quality is poor." I wonder what the basis for the statement is. Among the barangays of the town, only Kulaman is officially identified as urban, and as I have observed firsthand, the village barely has possible sources of air pollution, such as factories and motorized vehicles.

Another error I noticed in the document is the land area of Senator Ninoy Aquino. It should just be thirty-nine thousand hectares, not thirty-nine million.

Poverty in Kulaman

More than week ago, I created a post stating that Senator Ninoy Aquino is the poorest town in Region 12. The data were taken twelve years ago by the National Statistical Coordination Board. I rummaged through the agency's website again to look for more recent poverty statistics, and good news, my poor little town is no longer as poor.

Since 2000, NSCB conducted several more poverty estimates for the country. I can't find the results by municipality for 2006, so I will cite only the findings for 2000, 2003, and 2009. (NSCB's website could surely benefit from a little 5S.)

As I've posted, in 2000, Senator Ninoy Aquino received the dubious distinction of being the most impoverished municipality in Region 12, with 74.90 percent of its populace living below the poverty line. T'boli in South Cotabato ranked next at 73.67 percent, and three other towns in Sultan Kudarat Province registered poverty incidence above 70 percent—Colombio, Lutayan, and Bagumbayan.

In 2003, poverty in Senator Ninoy Aquino had been alleviated, for only 63.63 percent of its populace could not afford basic necessities. The municipality ranked fourth among the poorest in the region. The top two belonged to South Cotabato Province—T'boli (66.50 percent) and Lake Sebu (65.31 percent)—and on the third spot was Malapatan (66.37 percent), of Sarangani Province.

In 2009, the ranking of Senator Ninoy Aquino improved further. The municipality now placed twelfth, with only 47.60 percent of the population experiencing poverty. The sad thing is that its neighbor, Palimbang, took over the top spot, with 63.70 percent of its residents unable to make ends meet. The town was eighth in 2000 and sixth in 2003.

The most alarming about the findings is that the municipalities that registered the highest incidence of poverty are where indigenous tribes live. Hopefully, the statistics will goad (or shame) the local government units concerned into improving the plight of their peoples.

Senator Ninoy Aquino Is Poorest Town in Region 12

For aesthetic reasons, I don’t want two or more posts to appear on the same day. That’s why even if I have finished writing more than one article, I publish only the first one and then schedule each of the rest to appear on another day. But it looks like I’m going to break the self-imposed practice this soon. I just have to insert this piece of news right now.

I admit I wasn’t able to hold back my tears when I came across the news a few minutes ago. The bare facts do not need to be stated in a dramatic language to tug at someone’s heart: The Municipality of Senator Ninoy Aquino is the most impoverished in the region. Three out of four people here live below the poverty line. This means they do not eat three full meals every day, they cannot pay for a doctor whenever they are sick, and they cannot send their children to college.

What’s sadder is that the National Statistical Coordination Board gathered the data way back in 2000. Twelve years from then, the situation seems to be the same, and it won’t likely change in the near future. Those who have filed their candidacy for the coming elections are your traditional politicians.

Addendum: I do not yet know how to use this pre-scheduling option, or I've been time disoriented. This post appears alone on this date.