This column was for last issue but the write up got mixed up in glitches of technology. Anyway it is still February so let me relate what happened on Hearts Day, the other name for Valentine’s Day.February 14th brought me to Panglao with the family. It was a treat I promised myself, my wife and kids when I retired. I told them, “now that I no longer have a day off from relaxation, we will find time together on Valentine’s Day.” We did just that in one of the best spots of Panglao Island. It was a heart-filled day that day at the resort but the following day was a heart breaking one. As I used to do whenever I have the chance to spend time at a beach, I woke up early before everybody else to have a walk on the beach and enjoy the whiff of fresh air that the sea breeze brings to the land. What I saw on the almost a kilometer of white sand beach that make up the attraction of the Alona beach South of the island was a heart rending one.

I couldn’t see how resort owners and local government officials of Panglao have become short sighted about the money they can amass from the natural attraction of Panglao – the beautiful white sand beaches. They have completely disregarded the long term sustainability of the attraction for future Panglaonons in particular, and Boholanos in general. Buildings have invaded even the salvage zones of the beach along the Alona Beach in Brgy. Tawala. From the Bay Watch Diving to Isis Bungalows down South, you would think there are no laws to be followed but the greed for business and the money it can bring. The only place that remain in contrast because it is still beautiful, is that stretch from Hennan Beach Resort (formerly Alona Palm Resort) to Alona Tropical. I took pictures of concrete and permanent buildings in violation of the 20 meters salvage zone under the Water Code of the Philippines and the Panglao Island Tourism Development Guidelines. I took pictures of sea walls built in violation of the same law and is causing the white sands to be slowly returned by the waves to the bosom of the ocean. Some of those sea walls have already been eroded underneath and are about to break into pieces by the constant pounding of the waves. I took pictures of the green algae that have been left on the beach by the ebbing tide. These are not the ordinary “lusay” that are washed ashore during high tides. These are green algae that, I surmise, grow out of poor quality sea water.

I dread to hear the Department of Health make that announcement in the future. What has happened to the water treatment plant required of every business construction in the island? I took pictures of the hundreds of pump boats crowding the fronts of the resorts like eyesores. They are the same pump boats that drive fear into dolphins who want to frolic during early morning for the tourists to see and enjoy. I predict there will be a time when the dolphins will change playing fields unless the practice of swarming the dolphins with tourist-filled pump boats does not stop. And so I say unto all the politicians running for municipal elective positions, you have a hell of a job awaiting you to be done if and when you win in the May 2013 elections. The Alona Beach is at its worse condition and will become worst in the next three to five years unless drastic action is done by the local government officials, the beach resort owners and the general population of Panglao. The crown jewel of Bohol is slowly being melted into permanent destruction. If you do not have the political will to make Panglao what all of us dream it to continue to be beyond future generation’s lifetime, I suggest you don’t ask the people to vote for you. God has endowed Panglao with a beauty no human being can make, so let no man destroy it!

NOTES: Every time we hear of evil things being done, we ask ourselves, “What has happened to humanity that God so loved and sent His only begotten Son to save from sin?” This question is being asked everyday and begs answers especially during the morning news on the radio and television when all we hear are crimes and immorality as if the devil is succeeding in his mission.

On the Eve of Valentine’s Day I got one answer that brightened the world again for me. Yes, there are many good men in this world today. They are not just reported. Here is why. In the afternoon of February 13th I had to commute to fetch my daughter, Relma, after school because my car broke down. There were tricycles at the gate of the Holy Name University High School but they were outnumbered ten to one by the students going home. So we decided to walk to the national highway to have better chances of getting a ride before darkness fell. No luck. The students were smarter than me in getting a ride. I decided to hire a taxi when at already near 7:00 o’clock in the evening we could not yet get a tricycle. This time luck was with us. A taxi was caught in traffic and I got the driver’s attention to wait for us. Inside his taxi I asked the driver how much it would cost us to be brought home. He said, “Sir sorry padulong ko sa BQ to pick up a passenger, pero sige lang, hitch lang mo kay mas daghan man sakyanan didto.” When we reached the City Square, I offered him fare but he dismissed it and said, “Ayaw lang kay naa man koy pasahero jud nga kuhaon.” My heart melted and I said to him, “Buotan ka nga tawo, God bless you, daghan kaayong salamat.” In our hurry to take the regular trip of the jeepney home I failed to ask for his name. Relma, however, remembered to get the plate number of his taxi – GWW-765.

To dear driver of the taxi with Plate No. GWW-765, you changed my view of the world and the moral suasion of people that day. Thank you again.