Ronnie Jabadan: Cebu City sweeper shares his journey of faith and duty

How a father of 3 ends up cleaning Cebu City streets for 2 decades

Ronnie Jabadan during his duty street sweeping along Osmena Boulevard early this morning. | Jay Ba-a

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Sinulog Festival in Cebu City is known as the grandest festival in the Philippines. 

With its week-long celebration of festivities, concerts, grand parades, and novena masses, thousands of people from different provinces visit the city to witness the events of this highly anticipated festival. 

But amidst the crowd and the thousands of visitors every day, who ensures that the city’s welfare and cleanliness are maintained despite the expected huge volume of garbage?  

Meet Ronnie Jabadan, a 60-year-old street sweeper who has dedicated 20 years to his job and remains a faithful devotee of Señor Sto. Niño.  

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20 years of street sweeping  

In an interview with CDN Digital, Jabadan shared that his duty would start at 4 a.m. and would end at 12 midnight. However, since Sinulog activities have kicked off this year, he has been coming to work even earlier starting at 3 a.m. to begin cleaning the streets as trash piles up quickly with the thousands of people attending the events.  

“Akong duty 4 sa buntag kutob 12 midnight, pero nag-start mi diri ganina mga 3 kay daghan naman kaayog tawo. Mu-off mi karon ug 12. Daghan nag basura, pero sige lang, mao man ni among trabaho,” said Jabadan.

(My duty starts at 4 in the morning until 12 midnight, but we have started here at 3 a.m. because there are really a lot of people. We will end our shift at 12 midnight today. There are many garbage, but, that’s okay, that is our job.)

Jabadan said that he previously worked in a government office for 12 years. However, at 40 years old, he decided to become a street sweeper after his doctor advised him to engage in physical activity as he aged.  

“Sa gobyerno office kay 12 years ko. Unya pag-40 na akong edad, balik ko diri sa field kay advice man sa akong amo nga doctor sa una nga imong edad, patong na gani ug 40, kinahanglan na kag exercise,” he said.

(He once worked in a government office for 12 years. Ang when my age reached 40, I went back to the field due to the advice of my doctor before that at my age, when it reaches 40, you would need to exercise.)

Despite the challenges of his work, especially during Sinulog celebrations, Jabadan expressed his gratitude to people particularly to fellow Cebuanos who were responsible enough to dispose of their trash properly.  

“ Sa akong duty diri, bisan pa daghan kaayog basura, ma-control ra man gihapon nako. Mag-suroy sad ko dala akong basurahan, unya naa sad mga tawo nga mu-duol og mulabay. Mao, malipay kaayo ko kay respectful man sad uban Cebuano,” said Jabadan.  

(In my duty here, even if there are many garbage, I can still control them. I will go around bringing with me a trash can, and there are also people who would approach me and throw their garbage in the trash can. That is why I am happy that there are a lot of Cebuanos who are respectful.)

While he has accepted that large crowds mean tons of garbage, Jabadan remains hopeful and thankful to Sto. Niño for his health, which allows him to continue with the job he loves.  

 A faithful devotee  

Jabadan resides in Barangay Busay, Cebu City, and has been a devoted follower of Sto. Niño since childhood. His parents instilled in him and his siblings the value of being prayerful and faithful to the Holy Child, a belief he continues to hold today.  

“Akong amahan ug akong inahan grabe kaayo’g tinuohan kay Sto. Niño. Mao nga hangtod karon, salig jud gihapon ko niya. Pa bata-bata ra na siya, pero grabe na kusgan nga Balaang Bata,” Jabadan said.  

(My father and my mother, their belief in the Sto. Niño is really strong. That is why until now, I still trush him. He may be a child but he is really a strong one this Sacred Child.)

Through his hard work and faith, Jabadan proudly shared that he was able to send his three children to school, all of whom have now graduated from college.  

“Kami pa sa akong misis, gagmay pa akong bata, naningkamot jud mi unya salig sa Sto. Niño nga tabangan mi sa among kinabuhi. Mao nga napa-eskuyla nako sila ug nakahuman,” he added.

(My wife and I, since our children were small, worked hard and we trusted the Sto Niño to help us in our lives. That is why we managed to send our children to school and have them graduate from school.)

Despite the dangers and challenges of working in the streets, Jabadan remains steadfast in his faith and continues to serve Cebu City with dedication. 

For two decades, Jabadan is one of the modern heroes who ensured that the city’s streets stay clean, even during the busiest and most festive days of the year.