ANGELES CITY – “Look, a tarp of Bayung Angeles led by Amos Rivera is nailed on a tree in Barangay Pandan. Noon sabi mo tagapagtanggol ka ng mga puno. Anyare? Is this not a violation of the Environmental Code of Angeles City? Can you be consistent?”
So accompanied a poster of the whole slate of city mayor-wannabe Amos Rivera, incumbent city councilor, nailed on a tree in Barangay Pandan, uploaded by journalist Tonette Orejas in her Facebook page.
The post generated comments and more photos of posters of candidates on all sides of the political fence tacked on trees.
The city environment and natural resources office (CENRO) stirred into action with this patent violation of environmental laws.
The Environmental Code of Angeles City (City Ordinance 431), specifically Chapter 15 penalizes the posting of billboards, posters, streamers, and similar such promotional materials on trees in public places.
CENRO served Rivera a citation ticket for violation of the ordinance on Nov. 26, directing Rivera “to appear at the [CENRO] within three days from date thereof for appropriate disposition of the citation. Failure to appear… as required the city mayor shall within twenty-four hours forward the case to the office of the prosecutor for the filing of appropriate charges.”
Incumbent councilor JC Parker-Aguas of the Lazatin administration slate and candidate for councilor Alma Dizon-Mercado have also been issued similar summons.
A source at the CENRO said all the others who have had their posters nailed on trees will be dealt with accordingly, “no matter their party affiliations or the position they are gunning for.”
It was on Rivera though that the “tree nailing” impacted most, given his public projection as an environmentalist. “Anyare?” as Orejas asked in her post.
A widely acclaimed photograph Rivera posted in social media was his joining in January last year of the community-led vigil to save the 259 trees along Friendship Highway endangered by the road-widening project of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
The widespread practice of nailing political, as well as commercial, posters on trees has not, as of uploading time, merited any action in other areas of Pampanga. With photos grabbed from FB/CTTO
