By CHITO CHAVEZ
Complaints against barangays that were not operating full-time as mandated by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) continue to pile up as many citizens have sought their assistance in this time of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
DILG Undersecretary for Operations Epimaco Densing III emphasized on Good Friday that skeletal forces should man the barangays 24-hours a day to cater to the needs and concerns of their constituents especially during emergency cases.
However, a Quezon City resident on Black Saturday complained that his telephone calls well left unanswered several times as he admitted to be in a “panicky state’’ with his wife running high fever for several days.
“I was calling the barangay but no one was answering. I wanted to seek assistance on how my wife can get a swab test. As far as I know the office should be manned by a kagawad the whole day even during holidays,’’ the resident who requested anonymity said.
Informed of the concern, Barangay Quirino 2-B officer-in-charge (OIC) Oscar Reyes said that “workforces are present 24 hours a day in his office.’’
“Kapag may dumulog sa barangay may tao naman na magaasikaso sa kanila. Pag kailangan ang ‘kagawad’ (village councilor) sa usapin niraradyuhan sila at nakakarating naman ng mabibilis (If someone goes to the barangay somebody will attend to their needs. The kagawad are able to confer with the concerned parties as the need arises when informed through radio messages),’’ Reyes said.
Reyes explained that the telephone lines are out of service from time to time but are easily restored in a few minutes.
“’Yung telepono ng mga tanod (village security personnel) talagang not working. Pero gumagana ‘yung (telephone line) sa (barangay) administration office (The telephone lines in the office of the tanod are not working but the line in the administration office is functioning),’’ he added.
Reyes said that the caller might have dialed the telephone numbers of the barangays.
Through the intercession of a neighbor, Kagawad Maria Elena was able to address the concern of the complaining resident. “I cannot tell if the swab test on any person comes out positive. Let us leave it at that,’’ Oreta said.
