Reflection 5: Community Profiling

My Kapampangan neighbour and I have different opinions on who the better actor is, Jinggoy Estrada or Mikey Arroyo.

My childhood friend and I who lives next door to the right are poles apart when it comes to the issue of whether Manny Pacquiao should have or should not have won the congressional seat from Darlene Custodio.

The “lutong ulam” vendor and I cannot agree on whether pork sinigang should have ginger as an ingredient.

We may all differ in opinions, perspectives, cultures, etc., but at the end of the day we all worry about if the next tide will be high or low, since our place is within the boundary of Caloocan, Navotas and Malabon. I, my Kapampangan neighbour, my childhood friend and the “lutong ulam” vendor are all members of Barangay 12 community in Caloocan City.

Knowing the common concerns and problems in our community (flood for instance), helps in the planning of the programs and projects that will improve our lives. Once or twice every year, usually during the rainy months, the local government of Caloocan dispatches anti-dengue teams to our community. They conduct lectures on how to avoid the disease caused by mosquito bites, as well as how to spot a person with dengue.

Another project by the Caloocan local government was the free anti-rabies injection for the residents’ pet dogs. This was carried-out a few years ago, at a time when the number of cases of rabid dog bite victims was high. I remember it, since my most favourite pet of all time Archie (RIP) benefitted from the project.

Before they went on with the project, the people from the local government cooperated with our barangay officials who gathered all the residents and dog owners. They explained to us the importance of the project and went to interview each of the dog owners about the dogs. Among the things I remember the representative asked me were how old was my dog, what breed, if my dog has ever bitten someone, etc.

It proved successful because the incidence of rabies victims in my community went down. And when Archie had bitten my bestfriend in the shin, he only suffered from shock and became much wary of approaching any dog.