ILOILO City – While most of us are under the shades of our respective workplaces, homes and commercial establishments, the city’s beautification team and street sweepers are out in the streets to do their thing – maintain Iloilo City’s cleanliness and beauty every day.
Most of these people were city hall job hires deployed under the Iloilo City Beautification Team and the General Services Office (GSO).
Forty-year-old Lailanie Vicente of Barangay Rizal Pala-Pala here is one of the more or less 300 personnel of the beautification team.
Panay News chanced upon her and her group mates tilling the soil at flower boxes and cleaning up dry leaves and weeds at a center island in Barangay Sambag, Jaro district.
Lailanie said this was their daily routine – positioned at their respective areas of assignment to maintain the flower boxes and flower gardens. A schedule is being followed: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
According to Lailanie, their job may be laborious but they just go with it.
“Kapoy sa kon kapoy pero amo ‘na ang tawag nga obra kag gina-enjoy man namon amon obra maski kapoy,” Lailanie told Panay News.
This has been their stress-reliever, too.
“Dula man stress mo sa panimalay mo kag sa mga problema. Diri mo na lang e-enjoy sa obra,” she added.
Lailanie added that they are getting inspiration from the positive feedback from the public.
“Amo ‘na gani nga daw maganahan man kami mag-obra kay makita namon kis-a gina post (sa social media)… Ginadayaw man kami,” she expressed.
Meantime, Lailanie understands that not all are pleased despite their hard work, but for them the important thing is appreciation.
“Indi man tanan positive (comments), indi malikawan may mga negative… pero wala na namon ginasapak, importante ang mga tawo nga ga-appreciate sang amon obra,” said Lailanie.
Lailanie’s fellow job hire, Rutchel also shared the same sentiments.
She said they are happy to hear compliments from the public and they took it as an inspiration.
Aside from the beautification team, Iloilo City has 257 job hires and 12 permanent employees who worked as street sweepers.
While most of us are still sleeping, they are already out in the streets to clean.
Mayor Jerry Treñas is commending the men and women behind the city’s beautification program and street sweepers.
“Despite the pandemic they have never stopped working to make Iloilo City a clean and beautiful city for everyone. Salamat guid sa sacrificio ninyo tanan. Bato Iloilo!” Treñas expressed.
Indeed, rain or shine, with or without pandemic, the beautification team and the street sweepers are the metro’s gems./PN
