Remember 8/11!

The battle cry against international terrorism has been "Remember 9/11!" This refers to the bombing of New York's Twin Towers on September 11, 2001 that killed more than 3,000 and injured even more.

Because of that, U.S. President George W. Bush launched an invasion of Iraq to capture Saddam Hussein, believed to be the top sponsor of terrorism. Let us also have a battle cry, "Remember 8/11!" to emphasize and give importance to a sad day when on August 11, 2006 off Guimaras, oil tanker M/T Solar sank carrying some 2 million liters of oil owned by Petron being shipped from Bata-an to Zamboanga.

The damage to life of 9/11 was tremendous. The damage to environment of 8/11 is unimaginable.

Tonight our topic at "Feedback" at Sunshine Channel is about the oil spill but we title it, "Remember 8/11." Our guest is local DENR Environment Management Specialist engineer Benjamin "Enoy" Cuales.

Join us in the discussion. If you don't ask question, contribute your ideas. We flash the telephone numbers you can call. Let us make it interesting.

***

This oil spill is a serious matter. The effect on the environment will be there for generations.

Some tried to quantify the damage that as of 8/22 or just eleven days after, it affected 220 kilometers of the coast line, 20 coastal barangays, threatening the marine reserves in the Visayas and the livelihood of some 6,000 people mostly dependent on fishing.

But 8/11 can create more damage than these. Of the 2 million liters in that tanker only a small part has floated. Many more are still there in its hold.

Will the tanker be refloated? There are those arguing it's more dangerous and costly to refloat the tanker. We don't know but my friend Neil texted me, USS Arizona of the U.S. Seventh Fleet was bombed and sank by the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

Up to now, Neil said, there is still oil coming out from the sunken ship, 65 years later. I just am imagining, if M/T Solar is not refloated and the oil tanker stays there at the bottom of the sea, the spill might last for 200 years. USS Arizona was not an oil tanker but a battle ship.

***

We prefer to get it from engineer Cuales tonight. What we have been told is that a damaged corral reef by oil spill cannot recover in 50 years.

Corral reefs are the home of fishes and other living creatures under the sea. The moment this is destroyed and the fishes have no more breeding ground and no more food, they'll go somewhere.

Our Visayan Sea is one of the richest fishing grounds in Asia. It teems with all kinds of fish. Should the oil spill reach this place it can adversely affect the fish catch.

The Sagay marine reserve is one of the best we have. Because of it, livelihood of the people in the area has been very much improved. I wrote a few days ago, we visited and toured the area with the German ambassador on the invitation of former Rep. Freddie Marañon.

These should be protected.

***

Our problem is many of us do not see the problems. We need a better vision.

And talking of vision, I got a copy of an international publication "Ocular Surgery News".

What interested us was a paper presented by Dr. Miguel Tomas S. Sarabia, son of our friend, Dr. Tony Sarabia.

Mike presented the paper during the celebration of the Sarabia Optical Centennial in Manila and Iloilo. Mike is the medical director of the Tony Chan Memorial Eye Center in West Visayas.

Tony Sarabia, on the other hand, is the only living child of Dr. Federico Sarabia, the first eye doctor in the country who first opened in 1906 his optical clinic in Iloilo, then in Manila.

His children came out to be eye specialists, either opthalmologists or other branches of medicine dealing with eyes.

I don't want to venture into writing something I do not know much about. But Dr. Mike Sarabia's technique is called "Topical manual small incision cataract surgery" or TMSICS.

It is a new surgery which he first observed in an eye hospital in India. You want to know some more. Call up Mike or Tony Sarabia. They will be happy to explain it to you.

***

On last Wednesday's issue of The Manila Bulletin, the Commission on Audit gave financial report on the 79 provinces and 117 cities of the country.

What disappointed me was, so far as I can remember, Bacolod was always ahead of Iloilo. In the 2005 report of COA, we are trailing behind Iloilo City. And with Jerry Treñas' program called "Road Map", praised by national economic writers, we might be left farther behind unless we act.

Of the 16 cities in West Visayas, the ranking was 1. Iloilo, 2. Bacolod, 3. Kabankalan, 4. San Carlos, 5. Sagay, 6. Cadiz, 7. Bago, 8. Roxas, 9. Silay, 10. Himamaylan, 11. Victorias, 12. Talisay, 13. Sipalay, 14. Passi, 15. Escalante, 16. La Carlota.

How far is Iloilo ahead of Bacolod? In assets Iloilo has P1.565 billion while Bacolod has P1.551 billion, a difference of only P14 million.

But in total income while Iloilo got P842.789 million, Bacolod got only P707.097 million. Iloilo has a better management. Mayor Bing Leonardia must harness his people to find out what Jerry Treñas did that he did not do why Iloilo made a better income. Look at the ratio of income to assets, Iloilo is much better. Iloilo has 53.8 percent against Bacolod's 42.8 percent.

Well, among provinces, Negros is far ahead of Iloilo with assets of P2.925 billion against Iloilo's P1.930 billion.

But Iloilo has an income of P922.403 million against Negros Occidental's P1.328 billion. The income to asset ratio of Iloilo is 47.77 percent while Negros Occidental's is 45.4 percent.

I'd like to have more of this analysis later. But, cheers to Kabankalan. It is No. 3 city in Region 6 but in net income it is No. 1.*

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