BAGUIO CITY – Former Senator and 2025 senatorial candidate Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson on Wednesday lauded the country’s sanitation inspectors for the important role they play in maintaining the public’s health.
In his message before the League of Sanitation Inspectors of the Philippines, Inc. (LSIPI), Lacson said that should he earn a seat in the Senate, he will revisit and review Presidential Decree 856 to upgrade the working conditions of sanitary inspectors.
“Decades have brought along change, yet one thing remains clear: the work that you do as sanitation inspectors – as foot soldiers of our health department – remains as critical as before to public health and safety,” he said in Filipino at the LSIPI’s 24th National Planning, Consultative Meeting and Conference on Environmental Health, Safe Water and Sustainable Sanitation.
Related: Ping Lacson, Saludo sa Sanitation Inspectors sa Pagpapanatili ng Kalusugan at Kaligtasan ng Publiko
Lacson recalled that in the 1970s, Metro Manila and other major cities became centers of trade, technology, and modernization – but it was also during this time that the issue of waste management and widespread environmental pollution arose.
As more Filipinos from the provinces moved to the cities, there was an increase in diseases stemming from contaminated water such as cholera and diarrhea.
In December 1975, then President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. signed Presidential Decree 856, the Sanitation Code of the Philippines, that provided rules to ensure public health and sanitation, as well as care for the environment.
When the Covid pandemic struck, Lacson said sanitation inspectors were among the frontliners who helped ensure public health and safety.
“They did not hesitate to put themselves at risk, just to ensure the safety and health of Filipinos,” he said.
*****
Ping Lacson, Saludo sa Sanitation Inspectors sa Pagpapanatili ng Kalusugan at Kaligtasan ng Publiko
BAGUIO CITY – Sumaludo si dating Senador at 2025 senatorial candidate Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson nitong Miyerkules sa mga sanitation inspectors ng bansa dahil sa mahalagang papel nila sa pagpapanatili ng kalusugan at kaligtasan ng publiko.
Sa kanyang mensahe sa League of Sanitation Inspectors of the Philippines, Inc. (LSIPI), iginiit ni Lacson na kung magkaroon siya ng pagkakataong manilbihan muli bilang senador, isusulong niya ang pagbuti ng kanilang kalagayan.
“Sa paglipas ng maraming dekada na naghatid na rin ng napakaraming pagbabago sa bawat aspeto ng ating pamumuhay, isang bagay ang ating natitiyak: the work that you do, as sanitation inspectors – as foot soldiers of our health department – remains as critical as before to public health and safety,” aniya sa ika-24 na National Planning, Consultative Meeting and Conference on Environmental Health, Safe Water and Sustainable Sanitation ng LSIPI.
Natandaan ni Lacson na noong dekada 1970s, naging sentro ng modernisasyon ang Metro Manila at malalaking siyudad, pero dito rin nagkaroon ng problema sa waste management at environmental pollution.
Kasabay ng paglipat ng maraming Pilipino mula probinsya sa mga siyudad, dumami ang kaso ng cholera, diarrhea at ibang sakit dulot ng pag-inom ng kontaminadong tubig.
Noong Disyembre 1975, pinirmahan ni dating Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Sr. ang Presidential Decree 856, o Sanitation Code of the Philippines, na nagbigay ng alituntunin para tiyakin ang kalusugan ng publiko at kalinisan ng kapaligiran.
Sa pagtama ng Covid pandemic, kabilang ang mga sanitation inspectors sa mga frontliners na tumulong panatilihin ang kalusugan at kaligtasan ng publiko.
“Hindi alintana ang paglalagay ng kanilang mga sarili sa kapahamakan, masiguro lamang na ang kaligtasan at kalusugan ng nakararami ay maprotektahan,” aniya.
*****
Full text of Speech before the League of Sanitation Inspectors of the Philippines, Inc. (LSIPI)’s 24th National Planning, Consultative Meeting and Conference on Environmental Health, Safe Water and Sustainable Sanitation, Baguio City
Without intending to dull your senses with history, allow me still to invite you to join me in a brief, yet interesting journey down memory lane.
Let us take a quick step back to the 1970s – the decade that without a doubt defined significant global transformation, marked by social, political, and technological shifts that reshaped the world.
At that time, our country, too, was at the height of undergoing monumental changes, so to speak – navigating through its own chapter of growth and challenges.
1975 – ilang taon pa lamang ang lumipas mula ng nagtapos ako sa Philippine Military Academy, ang institusyon na humubog sa akin bilang isang sundalo. Malinaw pa rin sa aking alaala: batang tenyente ako noon na nakadestino sa Metrocom Intelligence and Security Group sa pusod ng Kamaynilaan.
Sa pag-usbong ng urbanisasyon at industriyalisasyon sa ating bansa sa panahong iyon, naging saksi rin ako sa isang pagsubok na sumalubong sa ating pamahalaan.
While Metro Manila and other major cities across our archipelago became centers of trade, technology, and modernization, an unavoidable threat emerged – alongside these advances came the growing issue of waste management and widespread environmental pollution.
Sa pag-agos ng mga tao mula sa probinsya patungo sa mga siyudad, sumabay ang pagtaas ng mga sakit tulad ng cholera, diarrhea, at iba pang mga sakit mula sa kontaminadong tubig.
Ito po ang tagpong naging banta sa mga komunidad noong dekada sitenta – mga hamong lumaganap lalo na sa mga lugar kung saan ang sanitasyon at kalinisan ay madalas na naiiwan sa likod ng mabilis na pag-unlad.
Bilang tugon sa suliranin, Disyembre 1975, ilang araw bago ang Kapaskuhan, nilagdaan ang isang kautusan na naglatag ng komprehensibong alituntunin at regulasyon tungkol sa kalusugan ng publiko, kalinisan, at pangangalaga sa kapaligiran sa buong bansa.
Ito po ang Presidential Decree No. 856, na mas kilala bilang Sanitation Code of the Philippines – isang makasaysayang hakbang na nilagdaan ng walang iba kundi ang ama ng ating kasalukuyang Pangulo ng Pilipinas, si Ferdinand Edralin Marcos Sr.
Sa paglipas ng maraming dekada na naghatid na rin ng napakaraming pagbabago sa bawat aspeto ng ating pamumuhay, isang bagay ang ating natitiyak: the work that you do, as sanitation inspectors – as foot soldiers of our health department – remains as critical as before to public health and safety.
Napatunayan na rin natin ito nang maharap tayo sa hamon ng pandemya ilang taon pa lamang ang lumipas – kung saan mismong mga sanitation inspectors rin natin ang nanguna sa pagpapatupad ng mga alituntunin ng pamahalaan laban sa banta ng COVID-19 virus. Hindi alintana ang paglalagay ng kanilang mga sarili sa kapahamakan, masiguro lamang na ang kaligtasan at kalusugan ng nakararami ay maprotektahan.
Bilang karagdagan, noong 2022, binigyang-diin ng United Nations General Assembly, sa pamamagitan ng isang resolusyon, na ang pagkakaroon ng malusog na kapaligiran ay bahagi ng karapatang pantao. This ensures that the right to live in a clean and safe environment is more than just an ideal; it is a fundamental right that paves the way for a higher quality of life.
Batid ko po na mayroong komprehensibong bersyon na sa Kamara na inihain ng kagalang-galang na Congresswoman Maria Rachel Arenas. Makakaasa kayo na ang counterpart version nito sa Senado ay aking isusulong at titindigan upang dagdagan ang kompensasyon at proteksyon sa mga sanitation inspectors sa buong bansa – kung pahintulutan ako ng Panginoong Diyos na makabalik sa Senado.
At this point, allow me to express my heartfelt gratitude to the League of Sanitation Inspectors of the Philippines, Inc. for the privilege of joining you today in your 24th national planning and conference. I definitely look forward to our continued collaboration in our shared mission to protect the well-being of the Filipino people.
Muli po, maraming salamat. Mabuhay ang League of Sanitation Inspectors of the Philippines.
Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!
*****