Tuao has held the title “Cleanest and Greenest Municipality” since 1999, in Region 02. The strong political will, sound local government programs, appropriate legislative measures on environmental and their firm implementation, community participation and unified actions have been the key factors in winning this prestigious award.
LGU Tuao’s clean and green program started during the term of the Hon. Congressman Manuel N. Mamba, M.D, then Mayor of Tuao. He created Task Force Clean and Green Public Market through Executive Order No. 01, series of 1994, to oversee and check the cleanliness of the public market and other business establishments in town. He also launched the Search for the Cleanest and Greenest Barangay and School to help promote community awareness.
When Presidential Assistant for Region 02, Hon. Atty. Francisco N. Mamba, Jr. assumed office as Mayor in 1995, he formulated a scheme, by virtue of Municipal Ordinance No. 96-014, series of 1996, to ensure the implementation of the Clean and Green Program at the household level. The Ordinance required every household to undertake backyard gardening, cleaning of the surroundings, canals, roads, and their immediate premises. Each household also posted a placard posted bearing the community slogan: “Tapat Ko, Lilinisin Ko, Likod Ko, Garden Ko.”
The administration of Mayor William N. Mamba has maintained and introduced significant improvements to this program. The acquisition of equipments for garbage collection like garbage containers, dump trucks and garbage compactors, construction of the newly completed 3-storey Town Hall Building, concreting of national and municipal roads are some of the remarkable accomplishments of Mayor William which have undeniably contributed, in no small measure, to the beautification of Tuao.
The search for the cleanest and greenest Municipality was launched in 1999 by a composite committee, with the DILG as the lead agency. The search is dubbed “Pagsisiyasat sa KAPALIGIRAN (Kaunlaran ng mga Pamahalaang Lokal sa Kalinisan at Kapaligirang Luntian). It has 4 program components, namely, Clean and Green, Linis Bayan, Food Productivity and Solid Waste Management.
The LGU adopted the following strategies to ensure community participation and proper implementation of local ordinances for environmental protection. These have helped a lot in winning the search:
- The Committee is chaired by the Municipal Mayor with some LGU Department Heads, PNP, SB Member on Environment, NGO’s and Dep-Ed being the members. The function of this committee is to oversee the implementation of the Clean and Green search in the different barangays with a set of criteria as their basis in the conduct of the evaluation.
- This is composed of six teams. Each team has to evaluate one (1) purok in every Barangay.
The basic requirement in each household are categorized as follows:
- Presence of Household Plate bearing the community slogan “ Tapat Ko, Lilinisin Ko. Likod Ko, Garden Ko.
- Presence of vegetable graden
- Cleanliness of Surroundings
- Garbage Disposal System: Waste Segregation of Nabubulok at Di-Nabubulok
- Sanitary Toilet
- Presence of Papaya and Malunggay Tree - this has been included to check the compliance of households to the program of Hon. Cong. Manny Mamba
The household is rated on a scale of 0 to 10 in each category.
Also included in this evaluation is the conduct of a municipal census for data needed for the ecological profile of the municipality. A census for Overseas Filipino Workers and Children in Conflict have also been undertaken.
The duration of the inspection is 16 days. Two barangays are evaluated each day.
Evaluation sheets are submitted to the Office of the MPDC for consolidation. The result is validated by the committee. Awarding is held annually during MSRT Night/Barangay Night of the Tuao Patronal Fiesta.
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT IN TUAO! Cleanliness has indeed become a Way of Life of the Tuaoeños.
