Mandaue Mayor Jonas Cortes ordered barangay captains to start cleaning drainage canals in their communities.
The dry season, he said is the right time to clean these waterways so that when the rainy season comes, flooding will be mitigated.
The mayor also underscored the need for the city to adopt a ‘no-plastic’ policy.
“The right time for cleaning canals and drainage is before rainy season,” he told the assembly of the Association of Barangay Captains (ABC).
Cortes tasked the City Development Council to monitor the city’s drainage canals and have those clogged cleaned with the use of the city’s suction truck and other equipment.
“I think this can be high-time to pass an ordinance for ‘No-plastic’ Mandaue,” he said.
Plastics are the perennial cause of clogging in canals increasing the risk of flood during the rainy season.
“We need the help of the business community, this is one way to reduce the volume of garbage which is mostly plastics,” he said.