PINK Future the is still

byCarlJohnRamos

Filipinos are painted as one of the most Resilient people in the world. No calamity could dampen the fighting spirit of the Filipinos.They are expected to always come out on the other side unscathed and stronger. As flattering as it is to be glorified for having the badge of resiliency, it is both an honor and a curse for the Filipinos, for it allows people in power to avoid accountability for their incompetence. Imagine how tired Filipinos are of receiving empty praises instead of the promised quality service. It is draining to always stand tall against everything when your feet are crippling, and your heart is running out of hope that things will get better. Even the strongest soldiers cry for help, need aid for their aching souls, and inspiration for their withering dreams. It is what fuels Angat Buhay Foundation, to meet Filipinos where they are and give them the service and accountability they truly deserve.

Before it became a NonGovernment Organization, "Angat Buhay" was already a program of the Former Vice President Leni Robredo launched in October 2016. Angat Buhay is the contribution of the Office of Vice President in the fight against poverty. The program aims to bring together the public and the private sectors— organizations and individuals alike—to address the needs of families in the farthest and poorest communities in the country. However, after losing in the 2022 Presidential race, Attorney Leni Robredo wanted to continue the programs she initiated in the past six years and launch the Non-Government Organization "Angat Buhay".Astonished and inspired by the amount of support and people willing to share their talents and resources for the Filipinos, she believed that creating this foundation would preserve the "Pink wave," the passion and hope people felt during the campaign, and she wished even to make it stronger.

According to Atty. Leni Robredo, the NGO, will have four key areas: health, education, disaster relief/ rehabilitation, and community involvement. Angat Kalusugan, she noted, seeks to address issues related to food security, nutrition and health care. While our country is still recovering from the adverse effects the pandemic left us, it is not an easy job for Filipinos to secure food for their families; hence nutrition and healthcare are compromised. To ensure Filipinos can still access quality healthcare without worrying financially, programs like Bayanihan E-konsulta will continue to operate under the ''Angat Buhay" NGO. The program seeks to assist COVID-19 patients and suspected cases in different areas across the country by linking them with volunteer doctors. Apart from COVID-19 consultation, the program will also offer general check-up services. Volunteer workers from the medical field surprisingly dominate the Bayanihan E-konsulta. The volunteers' passion kept this program going, and their dedication to their mission—to provide quality healthcare services for Filipinos regardless of incentives.

Meanwhile, Angat Edukasyon aims to continue education-related programs of Angat Buhay under the Office of the Vice President, including establishing community learning hubs and dormitories for students. Community learning hubs would serve as a haven for students to learn new skills and hone their talents. It is also a place where they can socialize with people with the same interests and create meaningful connections while learning. Moreover, one main concern of college students studying in a university far from their hometown is the accessibility to dormitories or boarding houses. Nowadays, renting is much more expensive, contributing significantly to the student's financial burden. More often than not, students have to adjust their budget for food just to secure an apartment close to their university.

Many Filipino students who belong to a family with low socioeconomic income can't even afford the materials needed for school, let alone pay for rent. To address this concern, Angat Buhay is building dormitories inside the schools that students can access for free. Instead of paying for apartments and boarding houses, these dormitories built inside the school will provide safe and comfortable lodging for the students while they study and fight to reach their dreams.

The former vice president said they would also establish a disaster fund to immediately support those affected by typhoons, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other disasters. Just recently, Angat Buhay NGO deployed volunteers for relief operations to areas hit hard by supertyphoon Karding. They monitored the impact on the ground and provided relief goods and help for communities devastated by the typhoon.

It is undeniable that the Philippines is geographically prone to typhoons, and we must have organizations aside from the government that focus on providing aid to Filipinos when calamity strikes. Angat Buhay volunteers have been sailing floods to rescue people and animals, and there's no wind strong enough to scare these heroes from doing it whenever a typhoon devours our homeland.

"Moving forward, we want to help strengthen and give capacity building to all volunteer groups established during the campaign," Robredo said. It only goes to say that the core of Angat Buhay NGO is volunteerism. It is the heart of the Filipino to serve his fellow citizens in desperate times.

The spirit that the Angat Buhay NGO wants to develop is not to wait for their directions but to allow people to help whenever possible. Challenge Filipinos to think of programs beyond the programs of Angat Buhay. The NGO encourages initiative and wants to bring out the camaraderie of the Filipinos and rekindle the "Bayanihan" within communities. During the campaign season, Atty. Leni Robredo promised that the future of the Philippines would be painted pink under her presidency. She and the 14 million Filipinos envisioned the thriving Philippines built by Filipinos from all walks of life; A Philippines that remembers its past, history, our identity, and looks forward to a system that liberates its people. The sit for the highest position in the country might not be for her, but indeed the inspiration she radiated is a spark that will keep our love in our country burning. Angat Buhay NGO and its volunteers will continue to

Smart Cities Smarter Philippines

byMuelMarkBueno

It is nearly eight in the morning. The honks of cars and buses fill the atmosphere. Pedestrians hurriedly run across the sidewalks, sweat beading down their faces, the sun hitting their eyes. Loading zones are full of people late for their appointments, trying to enter transport vehicles in hopes that they could still make up for the time they have lost. The streets are in a state of frenzy, and the roads are full of vehicles, only moving the slightest every minute. Everyone’s already tired before they arrive at their desired destinations. This is the everyday scenery of the traffic landscape in the Philippines.

Agency, and it is predicted to reach P5.4 billion per day by 2035 unless imminent interventions are provided. How specifically do traffic problems affect the country’s economy? Aside from the value of excess fuel costs, the value of lost time makes traffic a nemesis of the economy. The amount of work that could have been done and public transactions that could have been processed within the wasted time in traffic leads to lesser productivity. The traffic issue also significantly affects shuttle services, delivery trucks, and public transportation. For instance, a once-profitable transport operation of public transport vehicles to work productivity. The longer the travel time to the workplace, the lesser productive an employee becomes. With the traffic situation worsening, the government has decided to address the situation and help boost economic recovery. Through the government’s initiatives, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has expressed its commitment to finish its six Smart City projects during the 4th Asean Smart Cities Network (ASCN) Annual Meeting. Smart City is a framework that is primarily comprised of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), for promoting sustainable development methods to handle the issues of expanding urbanization. It aims to promote local area development and the effective use of technology, particularly smart technologies, to boost the economy and enhance people’s quality of life. Six smart projects are in the works, some of which were showcased by the DILG during the ASCN meeting. Some of the named smart city projects are the E-government

Services and Command Center Upgrade and in Manila; the Digital Traffic System and Bus Rapid Transit System in Cebu City; and Converged Command and Control Center and Intelligent Transportation and Traffic Systems with Security in Davao City. All of which strive to help improve the country’s situation with its urbanization issues.

Most of these projects are directed to help reduce traffic congestion and provide passengers with various options for transportation to encourage them to take public transport instead of traveling in their private vehicles. By doing so, the number of automobiles on the roads could be reduced and the traffic situation could be improved. Furthermore, smart city projects also help in improving the delivery of government services, making it more accessible for the public. Through digitization in the delivery of government services, there is a wide range of platforms when it comes to payment of bills for government and private entities. Filipinos can secure government permits and documents such as, birth and death certificates, occupancy permit and health certificate; payment of utilities,and money transfer transactions . Digitizing government services provides accessibility to more Filipinos, the paper works they need can be accessed by just tapping their devices. Life could be more convenient, which could help improve the quality of life.

What we need is not more infrastructure but better and smarter infrastructure. One way of being responsive is being innovative in planning and development on the part of the government. Smart cities lead to a smarter way of delivering public services, smarter ways of housing, and smarter mobility. It also provides an efficient way to reduce traffic and ease of doing business and transactions, all of which can help the economy. Through the development and increment of smart city projects in the near future, we are not just providing a solution to traffic congestion, but we are building a better, a smarter Philippines.