Before he moves to another august hall on the first day of July, out-going City Vice Mayor Teofilo G. Humilde Jr. had a quality time with Mother Nature and his citymates who supported him during the recent polls.
Yesterday, the incoming first district board member led hundreds of students, employees, policemen and NGOs to a massive tree planting activity at the Adopt-A-Mountain Project Site in Barangay Sabangan, here.
The said undertaking which was initiated by Junior Chamber International-Hundred Islands (JCI-HI) and the city government of Alaminos is in line with the celebration of the Philippine Arbor Day and Environment Month.
This year’s tree planting activity was dubbed as “Agew na Kakiyewan Na Baley ed Alaminos "(Day of the Forest in Alaminos) by the JCI-HI.
The local chapter took the led in helping the city government protect the city’s environment as one way of mitigating the effects of climate change.
Around the world, local chapters of JCI, the leading global network of young active citizens, are currently advocating for a sustainable environmental protection.
In his message during the simple program, Vice Mayor Humilde send anew the city’s strong message to the residents that protecting the city’s environment is everybody’s concern.
“Let’s make tree planting and cleaning our environment a part of our daily lives,” stressed the affair’s guest of honor and speaker.
“We have to understand that we already took so much from our environment and it’s high time to return it back what we borrowed from Mother Nature.”
Humilde even told his citymates to enjoy what they are doing and continue nurturing their plants in order to contribute to the realization of a bigger goal which is to fight global warming.
According to city agriculturist Arceli Talania, this is the first time that the tree planting was simultaneously done in more than 40 public elementary and high schools in the city.
Earlier, the city agriculture office distributed thirty seedlings in each school which will be planted in their respective identified future tree parks.
The city government will be providing the schools with different varieties of fruit bearing and forest trees they need in establishing their tree parks.
The city’s tree park has been producing seedlings for mass distribution to the barangays for the past 3 years, added Gester Tolentino, agriculturist II and in charge of the Adopt-A-Mountain Project.
Meanwhile, city administrator Wilmer Panabang lauded the JCI-HI and other NGOs like the Kiwanis Clubs of Hundred Islands and Alaminos, Hundred Islands Lions Club and Rotary Club of Hundred Islands, DepEd Alaminos, CENRO, the city PNP and 106th PMG, the academe, and other participants for their active role in re-greening the city’s denuded mountains and idle lands.
“In behalf of our beloved city mayor Hernani A. Braganza, we thank you for helping the city government achieve our Alaminos City Vision of a global, vibrant and green city in the next 3-5 years,” he added.
For her part, city councilor-elect Margielou Orange Humilde encouraged her fellow youth to take action and join JCI’s advocacy of protecting, conserving and rehabilitating the city’s vast ecosystem.
The former city SK Federation president represented city councilors Carolyn Dizon-Sison and Earl James Aquino, president and executive vice president of JCI-HI respectively.
The younger Humilde said that the city needs more volunteers and active partners to plant more trees in the countryside in the future.
She likewise assured that their (JCI) organization will continue on extending its share in making the city and the nation a better place to live in.
Officers and members of JCI-HI is set to personally suggest to environmental mayor to declare every 11th day of July as an “Agew na Kakiyewan na Baley Ed Alaminos” to institutionalize the massive tree planting campaign in the city. (CIO)
